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1 

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3 

1 

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6 

I'. 


o 
I/) 


THE 


DECLINE  AND  FALL 


OP 


Samuel  Sawbones,  m.d., 


ON  THE  KLONDIKE. 


BY 


HIS  NEXT  BEST  FRIEND. 


FULLY  ILLUSTRATED. 


THE  NEELY  COMPANY, 

PUBLISHERS, 
NEW  YORK.  CHICAGO. 


LONDON. 


n  3 


lyioio 


'  -A-' 


V.  < 


I 
I 


h* 


f 

I 


1 


'•  1 


I 


Copyright,  1900, 

by 

ARTHUR  CHESHIRE  NEELY 

In 
th« 

United  StatM 

and 
Great  Britain. 

All  Righu  Rttcrvcd. 


I'l 


L 


/       -» 


mmm 


PREFACE. 


Wtio  over  roads  n  preface?  Every  ono  who  wants  to 
read  intollifxcntly  and  with  profit. 

Lot  the  "^'ontlo  reader"  attend,  then. 

The  roinanco  of  tliis  hook  may  not  merit  criticism.  The 
ahrupt  sentiments  and  k'ctures  of  Dr.  Sawbonea  may  not 
moot  with  the  approval  of  the  public.  Nevertlielesji,  they 
are  the  firm  convictions  of  the  author.  And  if  the  public 
does  not  like  them,  it  has  its  refuge:  let  it  throw  down  the 
pa^'os  and  pass  on. 

Concern infj  the  Kl  Dorado  of  the  far  Northwest,  the  au- 
thor knows  whereof  he  aflirras.  He  has  paid  his  price  for 
the  information. 

He  is  aware  the  Klondike  (aboriginally  "Trondik")  is  a 
threadbare  subject  to-day,  but  the  early  history  has  been 
told  under  circumstances  and  pressures  that  made  it  quite 
imperfect.  Now  we  can  revise  it — dust  it  up  and  reclotho 
it — so  as  to  make  a  nice  new  picture,  which  quite  likely 
will  please  you.  He  is  not  writing  of  the  Klondike  of  to- 
day; most  items  are  of  the  season  of  1897-98,  the  famine 
winter. 

The  comments  upon  Canadian  justice  on  the  Klondike 
are  mildly  dravm.  If  you  are  of  contrary  opinion  after 
reading  this  book,  interview  the  author  personally  and 
he  will  convince  you  there  has  been  no  abuse. 

It  has  been  suggested  that  bcoiiiiso  of  the  similarity  in 
the  situations  of  the  Canadians  on  (bo  Klondike  and  the 
Boers  in  South  Africa,  our  sympathies  ought  to  go  with  the 
Boers.     On  the  contrary,  for  the  same  reasons  we  con- 


\\ 


!) 


iv 


PREFACE. 


A 


flomn  tho  Boers.  However,  there  is  this  distinction :  while 
the  Klondike  was  pioneered  and  developed  by  Americans, 
who  thon  were  kicked  out,  the  Boers  themselves  hnd  pio- 
neered and  developed  their  own  country  and  should  bo  al- 
lowed some  license  in  making  their  own  laws. 

The  author,  moreover,  wishes  hero  to  announce  a  broad 
distinction  between  tho  Canadian  and  its  mother  country 
or  English  Government.  The  Klondike  has  purely  a 
Canadian  nile,  which  tho  mother  country  is  not  responsible 
for.  Tho  laws  themselves  are  not  so  much  the  matter  of 
complaint  as  is  tho  administration  of  them,  which  is  so 
corrupt  that  Englishmen  and  Scotchmen  join  hands  with 
the  Americans  in  disgust  and  revolt. 


CONTENTS. 


A  Fair  Prisoner paok 

7 

Samuel  Sawbones,  Esq.,  M.D. 

J  jj 

Early  Alaska  Diggings 

O'J 

Fort  Get  There 

yo 

The  Lower  Yukon  Country 

^    ,    ^  41 

un  to  Dawson 

^.    ,     ^.  46 

Circle  City... 

^  • 48 

Dawson  on  the  Klondike 

At  Home  on  the  Klondike 

joy 

A  Mining  Tragedy 

Items 

^      ^.  130 

t/anadian  Boers 

167 

Samuel  Sawbones-His  Lecture 

The  Fall  of  Samuel  Sawbones.  Esq. ,  M.  D „', 


-T 


I 

I 

i 


h 

I' 


mMBH 


THE 

DECLINE  AND  FALL 

OF 

SAMUEL  SAWBONES.M.D, 

ON  THE  KLONDIKE. 


A  FAIR  PRISONER. 

The  wildest  of  the  wild  West  territory  has,  as  has  tlio 
most  Puritan  State,  rc^'ularly  apjiointed  court  jurisdii'- 
tions.  In  an  I'liihrvo  t'ity  tlu'rcdf  the  district  court  is 
convened;  the  judicial  niacliiiiery  has  in  chari,'e  a  fair  ^'irl 
prisoner,  wliiie  a  curious  populace  attends  to  witness.  Ur- 
diiuirily  tiiis  eanip  did  not  lionor  tlie  court  proceeding!^ 
witii  its  presence.  Tiie  overhanging  spurs  and  peaks  of 
the  great  Kockies  are  more  iinp(trtant,  more  interesting, 
for  in  them  are  the  gods  of  tiiese  jx'ople — goKI  and  silver; 
and  to  tlieni  are  tliev  devoted,  and  tliev  believe  more  in  the 
justice  dealt  them  hy  liieir  magic  3 — T — 7T  than  in  that 
disj)ensed  by  the  Pilgrim  courts.  But  this  prisoner  being 
a  girl,  the  gallantry  of  the  vigilants  refused  them  jurisdic- 
tion over  her.  Moreover,  the  charge  was  incendiarism,  a 
crime  from  which  nuiny  had  suH'ercd. 

The  history  of  the  prisoner  is  this:  She  is  the  sole  one 
of  a  numerous  famil)^.    The  greatest  monster  among  dis- 


^1 


8 


THE  DECLINE  AND  FALL  OP 


'^ 


case — the  cliicfost  scnurf^o  nnionfj  mankind — had  carried 
away  father  .'iiul  mother;  oiu'  hy  one  hrothers  and  sisters 
approached  a  f,nven  a<j:e  and  disappeared  in  accordance 
'.vith  strict  orthodox  lieredity.  lIcrsi'H'  liad  drunk  spruce 
teas  and  slej)t  upon  j)ine-hou^di  heds  of  the  north  coun- 
tries and  liad  hathed  in  tlie  fumes  of  tlie  tar  vats  of  the 
Caroliiias  and  j)ossiljly  with  henefit.  She  liad  listened  to 
tlie  aj)])eals  of  al^'crenes  on  the  southern  coast  of  California 
and  there  endured  ([uaraiitine,  exile,  as  instituted  against 
"one-lungers"  (so  facetiously  termed)  hy  their  hosts.  She 
may  have  wished  herself  ^\^'^,\^\,  only  wishing  does  m>l  hring 
death  more  readily  than  it  hrings  wealth.  However,  our 
prisoner  had  wished  herself  in  the  Kocky  ^fountains,  for 
in  crossing  that  range  she  had  ex))erienced  charms  that 
held  her  aloof  from  ])hysieal  ills  and  mental  strains.  She 
felt  herself  nearer  hea^'en  than  her  dreams  ever  approached. 
So  it  came  that  she  inhahited  this  camp,  nor  was  it  a  mis- 
take in  her.  The  lightness  of  the  air  at  once  put  her  lungs 
to  extra  duty — extra  expansion  to  insure  a  full  oxygen 
supply.  Develoi)me'^t,  enlargement,  follow  as  does  in- 
creased functions.  The  excessive  dryness  of  the  air  we 
breathe,  by  its  rapid  power  of  absorbing  moisture,  keeps 
diseased  lungs  free  of  obstructions,  free  to  heal. 

"Fat  and  fair"  was  the  verdict  in  favor  of  this  girl's 
migrating  to  the  Rockies.  The  universal  one-story  mock 
! VtMit  building  of  our  early  mining  towns  prevailed  here, 
.:!id  only  one  building  of  the  dignity  of  two  stories  lined 
the  main  street  of  the  place.  In  this  our  subject  had  lately 
made  her  home.  The  second  story  was  somewhat  an  aris- 
tocratic perch,  yet  she  had  no  envious  neighbors  to  make 
her  life  spicy. 

Summer-time  had  come  and  quiet  reigned  at  midday; 
shade  and  leisure  were  sought  rather  than  trade  and  ex- 
citement.    The  prisoner  now  in  the  dock  then  sat  in  her 


SAMUEL  8 A  WBONES,  M.  D. 


're. 


y; 

ler 


palace  pazinp^  out  upon  tho  waste — the  drear  blank  roofs 
stretching'  into  distance ;  the  so-called  zephyrs  of  these  parts 
swept  down  off  the  mountains,  fanned  licr  drooj)in<;  lashes, 
and  bronzed  her  mellow  cheeks.  Suddenly  a  cry  of  "l-'ire" 
startled  the  denizens  of  the  camp,  but  it  startled  not  thi- 
maid,  though  the  smoke  and  bhize  raged  upon  the  rooi'  di- 
rectly underneath  her  gaze,  and  she  must  have  perished 
only  that  a  ])air  of  strong  arms  bore  her  down  and  away; 
and  tlio  winds  scattered  the  brands,  the  l)rands  tired  more 
and  more  of  the  town  until  little  was  left  of  it. 

Then  the  populace  was  as  raging  as  the  fire,  Xo  little 
cloud  of  suspicion  hung  over  this  girl  prisoner,  but  a  dark 
hurricane  of  conviction  swept  down  upon  lier.  Xo  one  was 
to  dispute  the  origin  of  the  fire.  The  roof  underneath  her 
gaze  was  the  starting-point,  and  no  fire  for  days  had  been 
kindled  within  the  building  upon  which  it  started  nor  in 
the  adjoining  neighboring  ones.  There  was  no  way  to  ac- 
count for  it  save  coming  from  hunuin  hands.  Tho  girl's 
own  confession  tended  to  conviction.  "I  was  sitting  in  ray 
window  in  a  deep  reverie  wliicli  carried  me  back  to  the  past 
and  the  lost ;  then  from  the  roof  undernt'ath  leaped  a  daz- 
zling light ;  then  chaotic  shadows  reveled  as  it  were  be- 
fore my  eyes.  I  was  chained  with  intense,  unutterable 
agon}' — was  riveted  helpless  to  the  spot,  while  the  fury  and 
the  furnace  heat,  the  choking  fumes  and  damning  odors  of 
unearthly  things  overcame  me." 

This  camp  could  not  comprehend  the  spirituelle  of  the 
unusual  organization  in  their  midst.  The  trance  she  was 
thrown  into  by  the  glare  and  tlie  roaring  of  the  fire  raging 
iHidcrneath  was  quite  unintelligible  to  them.  She  ap- 
peared to  them  only  a  parcel  of  deviltry.  Well  that  the 
victim  was  a  woman,  or  tho  vigilants  would  have  grown 
a  new  crop  upon  the  hangman's  tree  ere  morning. 

iNorc  we  turn  to  the  court — the  trial.    The  whole  legal 


IK    ' 


10 


TUE  DECLINE  AND  FALL  OF 


array  at  this  flitting  is  (he  judge  and  tlie  prosecuting  at- 
torney. The  few  friends  of  the  (h'fendant  thought  it  use- 
less to  procure  her  counsel ;  there  appeared  to  be  no  de- 
fense. 

There  happened  to  be  in  the  camp  a  medical  practi- 
tioner from  one  of  the  few  colleges  which  recjuire  a  re- 
spectable preliminary  education  to  be  followed  by  a  long 
and  severe  course  of  medical  study.  In  this  we  find  ncces- 
garily  ambition,  honor,  dignity, — attendants  upon  a  thor- 
ough education  in  any  calling.  This  doctor  had  had  the 
prisoner  as  a  patient  once  and  he  knew  her  composition. 
He  was  capable  of  looking  down  through  her  eyes  into  her 
heart  and  reading  what  was  there.  He  could  comprehend 
the  dreamy,  impressionable  nature  which  would  account  for 
her  visionary  tale,  and  ho  could  account  for  the  fire,  yet 
not  prove  it.  Doctors  need  be  thinking,  reasoning  creators, 
but  work  in  quiet.  Now  and  then  you  find  one  to  brave  the 
working  force  of  the  District  Court,  but  in  such  case  weigh 
well  his  bravado  against  his  profound  conceit ;  for  how  can 
the  quiet,  untutored  mind  bullet  with  the  law  which  usu- 
ally respects  itself  more  than  all  else — justice,  humanity, 
religion,  virtue?  The  charge  to  the  jury  was  brief  and 
fatal.  A  prosecuting  attorney  with  learning,  conceit,  and 
ambition  never  sees  a  heart  nor  a  soul  nor  a  virtue  in  his 
prisoner. 

By  exclusion  this  prisoner  must  be  the  author  of  this 
fire.  No  other  resident  was  near,  no  flying  sparks  from 
passing  engines,  no  forest  fire  commimications,  no  neigh- 
boring chimney  in  use,  no  storage-room  from  whence  could 
spring  spontaneous  combustion,  no  nests  for  rats  or  mice 
to  ignite  stray  matches,  no  friction  of  timbers,  no  fire- 
bugs abroad  ;  only  the  proprietor  with  his  handful  of  loafers 
in  the  store  underneath,  and  this  prisoner  overhead  occu- 
pying the  only  possible  communication  with  the  flames 


f^ 


*.;- 


V 


IIIK    lAIR     I'RlMJ.NKR. 


SAMUEL  SAWBONES,  M.I). 


11 


I 


and  witnessing  tlu'ni  with  i>pi»arrnl  (Icliglit  and  fierce  in- 
leivst.     Tile  wise  twelve  iiavu  no  altiTuate  from  tlie  ver- 


dict- 


4V<  I 


vjUI 


ity 


In  tlie  elosin<'  scene  of  this  trial  was  ohserved  a  man 
witli  a  basket.  Nothing  was  observed,  I'or  he  simply 
wa lived  up  tlie  south  aisle  of  the  court-room  and  carcless- 
lilve  placed  the  basket  uj)on  the  window-sill.  The  doctor 
at  the  same  time  strolled  from  out  the  tiirong  and  as  (quietly 
adjusted  the  basket  in  the  full  glare  of  the  sun. 

In  these  rocky  regions  the  sun  is  expected  to  shine  every 
day.  When  a  picnic  is  announced  it  goes.  When  a  doe- 
tor  orders  his  patient  sunshine  and  exercise  he  expects 
to  meet  him  or  her  out  in  the  street  every  one  of  the 
three  hundred  and  sixty-five  days  of  the  year.  Well,  the 
doctor  further  arranged  some  contents  of  the  basket,  then 
drifted  toward  {\w  ])risoncr's  dock.  A  brief  spell.  The 
jury  is  polled,  the  Court  is  settling  down  to  the  neces- 
sity of  a  sentence,  when  suddenly  there  is  a  startling  re- 
port and  a  series  of  explosions,  a  riotous  smoke  and  11a me, 
and  a  tumultuous  rushing  and  tundjling  for  doors  and 
windows.  In  the  throng  amid  the  shrieks,  the  uproar, 
the  frenzy  are  the  Court,  his  ollicers,  the  jury,  the  multi- 
tude. When  cjuiet  was  restored  the  culprit  was  not  in 
sight.  We  may  guess  how  she  had  been  si)irited  away, 
whose  strong  arms  rescued  her  from  the  strong  arms  of 
the  law. 

The  next  edition  of  the  News  contains  the  following 
letter  from  Dr.  Samuel  Sawbones:  "The  tragic  finale  of 
the  criminal  trial  yesterday  was  simply  a  sentence  where 
it  belongs — a  confusion  of  law-givers  who  unscrupulously 
presumed  upon  justice  without  knowing  where  it  should 
rest.  The  basket  in  the  win. low  eontaiiKMl  only  a  lot  of 
combustible  material  of  loud  retiort,  of  l)ig  smoke,  and 
illusive  blaze.     The  explosion  \\us  caused  by  a  piece  of 


l 


i> 


1% 


THE  DECLINE  AND  FALL  OF 


glass,  the  form  of  convex  lens  or  sun  glass,  which  we  all 
know  focuses  the  sun's  rays  so  that  tliey  may  create 
iniiiiy  (Ii',i,n'ic's  of  lioat  and  produce  combustion  readily  of 
iiliiiiiHiiabie  substances.     In  tills  case  I  had  only  the 


:i! 


Moitdtn  of  a  tumbler  which  ha|)j)cned  to  be  thus  convex, 
or  sun-glass  shaped.  I  had  it  placed  in  position  to  catch 
the  sun's  rays  in  the  window  and  only  in  a  few  minutes 
did  it  set  on  fire  the  contents.  Now,  this  experiment 
was  not  to  stampede  the  Court  and  rescue  the  prisoner,  but 
to  prove  the  prisoner's  innocence.  It  was  an  exact  coun- 
terpart of  the  fire  on  the  roof  which  proved  so  disastrous. 
Previous  tenants  of  her  room  overhead  the  fire  had  cast 
upon  the  roof  perhaps  broken  glasses  and  bottles.  When 
it  happened  that  the  sun  had  shifted  into  position  or 
accident  had  shifted  the  glass  into  position  for  creating 
the  requisite  focus,  then  did  the  concentrated  rays  burn 
into  the  roof  and  start  the  blaze. 

"The  Court  should  know  as  well  as  I  that  this  girl 
prisoner  could  not  be  the  author  of  the  fire.  The  vir- 
tues should  not  be  so  nearly  extinguished  in  men  by 
their  cvery-day  calling  as  to  make  them  incapable  of 
divining  graces  in  a  girl  whose  soul  shines  out  of  her 
eyes  and  from  whose  heart  purity  springs  as  a  flame. 

"I  am  afraid  the  shock  of  the  late  unpleasantness 
will  so  have  shocked  my  poor  patient's  nerves  as  to  make 
it  imperative  for  me  to  abide  round  about  her — therefore 
excuse  my  sojourning  further  among  you. 


>j 


I 


I 


hich  we  all 
may  create 
readily  of 
id  only  the 
lus  convex, 
)n  to  catch 
'^v  minutes 
experiment 
isoner,  but 
xact  coun- 
disastrous. 
'  had  cast 
?s.     When 
^sition  or 
'  creating 
fays  burn 

this  girl 
The  vir- 
men    by 
pable   of 
t  of  her 
flame, 
s'antness 
to  make 
herefore 


i 


') 


I 


I 


tiAMVKL  SAWliONKS,  M.D. 


18 


SAMUEL  SAWBONES,  ESQ.,  M.D. 

Samlel  Sawuoxks,  Ksq.,  M.D.,  was  born  in  one  of  tlio 
Dutch  counties  of  lVnn.«ylvania.  He  was  born  of  not  poor 
yet  of  re>j)('ctiihl('  parents  many  years  a^'o,  even  before  the 
War  of  the  Kebellion.  He  was  raised  in  that  alinosi>hero 
which  prevailed  a  century,  then  dispersed,  leavinj;  llie  old 
Keystone  hitate  nothing  more  than  a  common  heritaj^e, 
leaving  it  without  a  power  or  inlluence;  and  indeed  that 
she  is  60  left  is  good,  judging  from  its  |)res(Mit  ((irruption 
and  what  miglit  occur  were  it  as  of  old — ''As  Pennsylvania 
goes,  so  goes  the  Union."  'I'lie  jjliilosophy  of  old  l»eii 
Franklin  was  the  dynamo  of  tliat  prosperous,  healthy  cur- 
rent which  made  the  old  State  once  reign.  Poor  Uiehard's 
Almanac  is  out  of  print  and  alas !  for  the  politics  at  least 
of  the  old  Keystone  State. 

But  Samuel  Sawbones  received  the  full  current  of  Poor 
Richard's  sayings  and  can  boast  that  he  was  brought  up 
in  the  way  lie  should  go.  "Honesty  is  the  best  policy" — 
that  went  without  saying  in  his  time.  "Early  to  bed  and 
early  to  rise" — he  did  not  need  the  curfew  to  ring;  the 
wealth  and  the  wisdom  of  the  day  were  too  evident.  '"11m 
ihat  by  the  plow  would  thrive^,  himself  must  either  hold 
or  drive,"  was  scrupulously  his  guide  from  the  earliest  day 
that  he  drove  the  cows  to  j)asture  up  to  the  present. 

Samuel  grew  and  gatheriMl  a  little  wisdom  here, there,  and 
at  various  institutions  of  learningamtil  in  time  hehiedaway 
to  the  university  of  the  State,  where  he  was  puffed  up  full 
of  medical  lore  and  burdened  with  a  great  green  box  where- 
in was  delegated  him  to  kill,  to  cure,  as  best  fitted  his  skUl. 


f 


14 


Tllh:  IHICLIMC  AND  FALL  OF 


I    I 


Ho  Icfl,  nlii:  !  not  witli  arms  full  of  boiuiuct.s  from  his 
graduatiii;^  |)lali"or:ii  nor  witli  a  ;^Mvat  lii;^  hri^'ht  star  piimcl 
to  till;  way-oil'  future;  for  two  of  thf  >liiiiiii;,'  li;,'lits  of  tlio 
^'rcat  iii-litulioii  liad  .-aid:  "Let  your  walk  ami  coiivcr.-a- 
tiou  1)1'  .'-ucli  that  all  cardiac  impulses  remain  umlisturhed, 
that  no  nervous  sensali<»ns  ari.-e  to  uid^alance  its  e(|uili!)- 
rium!"  Oh  I  oh  I  my  i)oor  hoy  I  That  nvans  you  lia\() 
some  very  serious  heart  disease,  in  accordance  therewith 
Dr.  Sawhones  paraded  his  new  silk  graduatin,!^'  hat  around 
the  srpnire  and  no  further  than  in  whidi  lived  his  father. 
He  ^ave  u[)  eatin;,'  his  inotlier's  doughnuts  and  t'lok  to 
bahy  foods.  And  he  broke  oil'  with  his  best  ;,drl  to  avoid 
the  excitemeids  that  must  nee  ssnrily  occur  with  a  sweet- 
heart. Aftei'  mopin;;  a  time  the  good  in  the  man  bcijan 
to  assert  itself.  "Die  or  not,  it  is  no  reason  why  in  t!;e 
interim  I  should  not  be  disj)ensing  the  })rofound  knowl- 
edge! within  me — why  others  should  be  dying  througli 
want  of  the  saving  inlluence  of  my  vasl  store  of  nuMlie-il 
resources."'  'IMien  ho  set  himself  to  work  iii  a  little  hiindeC 
to  cure  the  ills  therein,  but  his  success  was  so  U!i|)roi)or- 
tionate  to  his  conceit  that  he  wished  the  progno>tications 
of  the  wise  professors  might  he  hurriedly  vcrilled.  lie 
even  joined  the  baseball  club  and  played  third  base  for 
thorn.  This  may  have  been  for  one  or  two  reasonr.  lie 
began  to  fear  for  tlie  prognostical  virtues  of  his  old  in- 
f^^tructors,  of  whom  lie  entertained  the  greal(vl  adnnration, 
in  whom  ho  had  undying  faith.  Then  how  near  fame  it 
would  bo  to  bo  heralded  "Out  on  the  third:"  "tlio  third 
baseman,  Dr.  Samnel  Sawbonop,  of  the  Schloppind(>kop- 
plohoopinturtles,  fell  at  his  post,"  etc.  Ts  it  strange  to 
say  Samnel  grew  strong  at  baseball,  fattened  at  a  starving 
practice?  Indeed,  if  tlte  Irnth  nnist  l)e  l<dd  at  the  expense 
of  the  dear  old  Alma  Mater,  the  heart  disease  disappeared 
to  the  extent  of  leaving  Dr.  Sawbones  not  a  vestige  of 


I 


SAMUEL  SAWnONRS^  .V.  D. 


15 


lllH"l 
I*   UU! 

i'r.-:i- 

rlic'l. 
uilil*- 

•(•with 

H)k  I*) 
avoi'l 

in  111" 
ki\(»wl- 

int'tlK"!^ 

,  luimU't 
>r()l)t>i'- 
calion^ 
(1.     He 
asc  for 

old  in- 
iration, 
[fame  it 
\o  third 
(ndokop- 
langf  to 
ptarving 
oxponpo 
[ppcarcd 
stigc  of 


excuse  for  not  bring  as  other  men.  Yet  his  start  in  life 
was  bligiiti'd.  llowevi'r,  I'nli  ol"  tiuj  electrical  current 
gentratcd  hy  Franklin,  full  of  ainhition  and  energy,  he  fell 
to  with  iieart  and  hand  to  make  that  light  uIik  li  he  con- 
ceited was  vvilliiii  him  ^o  bhine  thai  all  the  world  \souid 
witnesti. 

Though  it  wonld  appear  that  there  imist  hi'  s(»me  Diiich 
blood  in  iMimnel  Sauhono,  it  is  nut  (piite  provin.  lie 
once  pre.-.-ed  lii.>  unde  f'lr  data,  h(»|)ing  to  prove  he  iniglii 
be  a  son  of  a  descendant  of  some  other  descendant  of  the 
Kcvolntionary  War.  **r»ut,"  said  the  seer,  "you  know 
many  Hessians  came  ovei'  to  light  in  that  war,  not  for,  hut 
against  us.  These  chii'lly  deserted  and  took  up  their  ahodo 
in  Pennsylvania,  where  they  became  ustful  and  thrifty 
citizens.  J  would  advise  you  to  not  j>ush  intpiiries  as  to 
pedigree.     You  might  strike  (his  source." 

At  any  rate,  Sawbones  was  lacking  in  the  thrift  of  the 
Dutch  of  his  nativity,  and  while  they  w'cre  building  im- 
mense thre(>-story  \y,\\\k  barns,  painted  red,  and  miles  upon 
miles  of  worm  fenc(\  he  was  souring  ujion  the  .'-cant  vege- 
tables they  traded  him  for  fees.  He  moved  to  the  Alle- 
gheny regions  and  there  tried  a  race  of  life  with  the  kill- 
deers,  but  he  found  them  carrying  knapsacks  over  the 
buckwheat  ilelds  he  was  traversing  with  saddlebags.  Then 
in  his  agony  he  said:  "Why  was  it  my  old  inlirmity  did 
not  work  the  allotnu^nt  of  my  old  ))rofessors?  Their  sui;- 
cessors  say  high  altitmle  kills  rapidly  the  victims  of  heart 
disease." 

So  it  occurred  that  Samuel  Sawbones,  M.D..  Ilauntid 
liis  shingle  in  one  of  the  high-altitude  towns  of  the 
Uocky  Mimntains — so  liigli  that  if  the  world  lia[)pens 
again  to  be  drowned  by  a  iloud  you  [)eople  down  on  the 
coast  will  be  two  miles  under  water  before  it  wets  our 
feet. 


V 


T 


I 


IG 


TUIC  I)  EC  LINK  ASn  FALL  OF 


1/ 


SI  ill  more  f^tran;;*'  tl>in|,'.H  arc  l<>  be  rccnrdcd — tnoro 
Btraii;;!',  however,  to  the  iiirdicil  profcsyinii  tlnm  to  tlio 
laity.  Tlie  lii;;li  altitude  did  not  kill  olV  Saiiiiiel  nor 
did  it  make  his  heart  disease  worse.  Added  to  the  alti- 
tude was  a  ^'reat  deal  of  exeitemeiit  and  of  violetuv  h;,' 
way  of  exercise  and  exposure.  When  the  doctor  found 
natural  causes  would  not  kill  liini,  he  ^Mve  up  hopes  of 
dyiii;.',  hut  ilid  not  despair,  for  he  found  life  a  little  nion 
worth  tln^  livin;,'.  When  he  ^'ot  hold  of  a  twenty-dollar 
piece  he  did  not  fiiul  a  Pennsylvania  Dutchman  there  with 
his  thumi)  on  the  ea;,de  pinching'  to  maki'  it  squeal.  Ho 
kept  a  little  diary  when  he  learned  that  orthodox  lectures 
could  not  he  made  to  always  work  orthodox,  lie  ob- 
served that  hi;,di  altitude  practically  has  no  ill  inllu- 
once  over  heart  disease;  that  subjects  of  it  live  possibly 
lon;,rer  in  tlie  IJocky  Mountain  reirions  than  elsewhere. 
He  can  recite  innumerable  cases  of  very  serious  heart  dis- 
ease who  are  as  well  as  tlicv  were  tweiUy  years  previous. 
He  cati  vouch  also  for  the  fact  tlr.it  homorrha,<:fes,  from 
any  ami  all  causes,  are  no  more  frequent  here,  and  ho 
believes  them  less  dan<,'erous,  but  of  course  the  book 
makers  will  say  he  is  a  fjn^at  liar.  Samuel  be^'an  life 
{.new  uf)on  his  advent  in  th(»  new  country.  He  climbed 
to  the  miners'  camps  upon  the  hiirliest  spurs  and  peaks; 
lie  crossed  the  \vildest  ran^jes  after  victims  to  wintry 
Mizzards;  he  drove  durin^j  the  fiercest  colds  and  storuis. 
Were  it  not  that  it  mi<,dit  influence  his  veracity  in  ('Hier 
more  serious  matters,  I  could  tell  of  his  havinnr  a  niulil's 
v/aiulerinf]^  in  which  his  bottle  of  sulphuric  ether  froxe  in 
his  pocket.  However,  we  will  not  press  you  to  believe 
thi&. 

Samuel  Sawbones  was  here  inelininjif  the  lenpr  little 
hit  to  fame  and  fortune,  and  had  he  not  hecn  horn  under 
the  auspices  of  a  very  mean  planet  ho  no  doubt  would 


:) 


SAMUEL  SAWnONES.  M.  D. 


If 


try 

in 
no 

tlo 
lor 
lid 


* 

1 


yot  b(»  a  loiulinix  iiUMliciil  Ii;:!it,  with  ii  fortnno  quito  largo 
(MiDii^'li  to  l)ii\  him  nil  oHicc  ttf  honor  and  n'sjxnisiliihty 
in  liu'  ;;irt  of  the  pcopN'.  Uiit  his  coinpojJiit  mi,  or  iiiayhi! 
'  Illy  liis  ciHlouiiiciit  thron;,'h  the  nilin;;  of  llir  al'ort- 
iiictitiotH'd  Miraii  phiiM'l,  h'd  him  to  preach  the  virliKvi 
instead  nf  altciidiii;;  strictly  to  hiisiiicss.  as  were  his 
ri;rlil-liand  and  his  h-f't-haiid  pndVssioiial  brothers  doing. 
lie  posted  nlioiit  him  his  ohl  i'oor  Itirhard  maxims.  Ilo 
went  so  far  as  to  pin  up  "ll(»nesty  i>  the  hc>l  !>oliey."  lie 
put  <»ver  the  transom  "Live  and  h't  li\e."'  Inder  the 
graces  was  written:  *\\iid  the  greatest  of  these  is  char- 
ily." One  (hiy  in  the  exen  ise  of  ( harity  he  drove  his 
gig  over  such  fearfully  rough  country  a"d  at  such  a 
breakneck  speed  as  to  drvehtp  that  sneaking  litth-  <lis- 
order  ap|)endicitis.  Kvcr  after,  that  little  varmint  l:ept 
nosing  about  to  annoy  him — no  ddubt  the  ruling  of  th(» 
mean  jtlaiiet  under  which  he  was  born.  He  had  ob- 
served so  much  the  fallacies  of  the  wise  UM'n  of  llie  Mast 
that  here  again  he  resolved  to  profit  from  personal  ex- 
perience. Instead  of  nursing  himself,  wrapping  liimself 
in  warm  Ibinnels  and  crawling  through  the  world  on  easy 
couch  bv  short  relays  niul  avoiding  kicks  and  culfs  of 
active  lifo,  Ik*  said:  "I  will  (h)  the  other  thing." 

('apt.  .lohn  J.  Ilealey  was  writing  glowing  deserip- 
iions  of  the  Yukon  country;  not  (d"  the  Klondike,  for 
that  region  was  not  known,  but  of  the  country  in  general, 
its  prospects,  possibilities,  Ijrilliaiit  future.  ('a|)tain 
Ilealey  pictured  all  the  gold  fields  at  present  looming  up 
before  us  .  ..d  never  faltered  in  his  assuranci'.  Circle 
City  with  its  Birch  Creek  mines  was  raging;  Forty  Mile 
was  panning  its  thousands;  and  tlii'se  were  only  pros- 
pecting camps.  "Well,  well."  said  Samuel.  "Why 
should  I  not  go?  ^Fy  store  of  three-ply  flannels  brought 
from  Edinburgh  town  and  too  warm  for  this  country 


'     i 


'1 


3       ( 


t 


H 

i! 


18 


THE  DECLINE  AND  FALL  OF 


will  be  just  in  luck  up  in  tho  Alaska  frosts."  T.ot  me 
su^fgcst  that  Dr.  Sawbones  was  not  looking  alto<;c'tlier 
trward  the  cure  of  his  ajtitciulicitis  when  he  was  talking 
'  to  him  elf  about  Alaska,  lie  had  just  j)as  ed  throuirh  the 
storm  written  out  in  the  first  chapter.  Now  here  we 
nd,i(ht  diverffe  a^jain  in  the  wrong  direction  if  not  ex- 
ercising due  caution,  for  was  it  a  fear  of  persecution  by 
an  outraged  foe — the  sadly  vaiKpiished  legal  authorities — 
cr  was  it  from  fear  of  a  liurt  thi'oiigh  the  subject,  the 
object,  of  all  that  triid  and  that  tribulation?  Samuel 
as  yet  bas  not  confessed  any  interest  in  bis  fair  patient 
other  than  professional.  The  girl  has  not  confessed  any 
interest  in  her  doctor  other  than  patient. 

And  bow^  did  it  happen?  Well.  I  don'i  know.  Fool- 
ish things  break  out  like  fires — spontaneously.  Here  the 
girl  is  telling  Samuel  Sawbones  that  she  loves  him,  ac- 
tually loves  him,  always  did  admin^  him  for  his  good- 
ness and  kindness,  but  now  adores  him  for  his — eh — his 
lovely  self!  And  Samuel,  tlie  big  booby  says:  ''Oh, 
please  don't.  I  am  not  good  enough  for  such  a  lovely, 
dear,  good,  angelic,  sweet  girl  as  you."'  Then  they  fell 
to  and  discussed  the  practical  side  of  the  comedy.  Dr. 
Sawbones  had  his  boxes  and  traps  laVteled  for  "FoTt 
Yukon,  on  the  Yukon  River,  .Alaska,  U.  S.  A.,  via  St. 
T\ricbaels.  in  the  Behring  Sea."'  The  girl  (we  have  not 
learned  b.er  name  yet)  is  hanging  out  in  one  of  the  larger 
cities  of  the  "i^)cky  Mountain  regions. 

"[  will  die,  doctor,  I  know  I  will,  when  you  leave  me. 
I  will  di(^  of  mil  III." 

"Yes,  yes,  T  kno'v  you  will,  my  goddess,  but  I  will  die 
if  T  remain,  ^ly  appendix — oh,  no — I  should  remark 
my  field  of  usefulness  is  limited  here,  while  the  poor 
Eskimo  of  Alaska  is  crying  out  in  agony  of  his  many 
infirmities  which  I  can  cure!     Oh,  hang  it  all!  you  know 


•| 


I 


f 


SAMUEL  SAWBONES,  M.  D. 


19 


ac- 


irgor 


mo. 

mvk 
[poor 
lany 
tnow 


there  is  gold  there,  nnd  it  is;  'gold!'  'gold!'  ringing  in 
my  cars.  It  is  a  gold  wire  to  my  nose  that  is  pulling  mo 
there.  Xow  don't  you  sec  the  devil  that  tears  me  away 
from  you?"' 

''And  oil,  dciir  doctor,  you  know  T  am  going  to  die  hero, 
and  yet  you  t(^-ir  yourself  away.  Wore  1  a  golden  calf 
you  would  stay  and  w(»i>lii|)  inc !" 

"No,  no.  1  will  go  jiiid  ()j)('ii  the  way;  then  you  must 
come,  ^'(»u  i'('nit'nil)('i'  the  ice  ])ahu'e  at  St.  l*aul,  how 
siiui^  and  warm  and  cozv  d  would  he?  I  will  huild  you 
an  ice  palace  cm  the  hanks  of  the  Yukon;  we  will  lino 
it  with  the  furs  of  the  cnrihou,  of  the  uolf,  and  will 
C(A('r  the  floors  with  the  rohes  of  the  moose  and  the  skins 
of  the  polar  l)ears;  then  we  will  decorate  it  with  nuggets, 
and  how  haj)py  we  shall  he!" 

I  wonder  if  Sanmel  did  not  tell  his  dearly  beloved 
t])at  he  would  make  a  cozy  corner  for  her  wherein  they 
could  do  their  wooing  while  the  aurora  horealis  danced 
bcfo-'o  their  eyes  and  vibrated  its  sympathy  through 
them?  And  did  he  tell  her  that  she  would  have  to  cat 
dried  salmon  and  that  she  would  have  to  draw  water, 
Eebccca-like,  from  a  great  deep  ice  well  in  the  Yukon, 
and  that  she  must  wear  mucklucks  and  waddle  like  the 
native  squaws?  Oh,  Samuel  Sawbones,  have  you  not  a 
lot  of  sins  of  omission  from  that  last   interview? 

*'Still,  dear  doctor,  since  you  know  I  am  going  to  die 
ill  my  loneliness  can  you  not  devise  for  me  some  relief — 
something  to  do?" 

"Do  nothing,  do  nothing,  my  dear  child.  Like  our 
grandfathers'  and  our  great-grandfathers'  girls,  simply 
be  a  girl  as  were  they  and  await  the  dawn  of  your  own 
existence." 

"Do  not,  please,  pet  me  with  those  endearments  you 
play  upon  th(^  young  girls  whom  you   saw  first  in   the 


•tMP 


I 


i 


I 


I 

^1 


I 


i 
1 


a!' 


;•/ 
f. 

i' 
1 

i) 


20 


7!S:^  DECLINE  AND  FALL  OF 


world  and  dandled  upon  your  knee  up  to  the  present 

voung    ladyhood.       I    am     Miss    until    you    can 

chulate  something  original  and  pleas! n<(  as  well  as  af- 
fectionate. To  continue  my  plea,  do  1  im])ress  you  as 
one  who  might  sit  idle,  dumb,  for  long  months,  simp!;. 
dreaming  of  thj  man  in  the  moon — which  E  take  as  the 
same  thing  as  a  man  \vay  up  in  Alaska's  frozen  bounds? 
Provide  for  me  pastime,  if  only  the  work  of  typewrit- 
ing." 

"Ugh!     Oh,  no!     \ot  that!" 

"Why  not  that?" 

"It  will  take  more  than  u'ords — it  will  take  a  whole 
lecture  to  say  wliy  not." 

"Very  well;  give  us  the  lecture." 

"Possibly  it  will  be  good  for  you  to  get  the  whole 
lecture;  therefore  you  shall  have  it.  I  need  not  coin 
reasons  why  you  shall  not  engage  in  pursuits  orginally 
within  the  domain  of  man.  These  reasons  are  flagrant 
and  I  only  recall  them  to  you.  Please  look  at  man's  in- 
terest in  you.  You  are  not  abusing  poor  man  by  steal- 
ing away  from  him  his  daily  bread.  lie  will  not  starve, 
nor  will  he  fail  to  provide  means  for  a  wife — if  he  wants 
one.  But  man  working  side  by  side  with  woman  loses 
his  ideality,  his  veneration,  his  gallantry  for  her.  He 
comes  to  view  her  a  fellow-being,  a  fellow-workman. 
She  returns  the  compliment,  naturally;  he  is  no  lord  and 
master,  she  says  to  herself.  Everything  grows  common 
between  them.  They  exchange  common  business  phrases, 
they  gossip  in  common,  and  talk  politics  in  the  common 
slang;  religion  is  discussed  until  a  common  belief  is 
reached;  domestic  relations  are  criticised  until  a  correct 
conclusion  is  arrived  at.  Like  plants  take  issue  and 
bearing  from  the  pollen  of  the  plants  surrounding,  so 
does  humanity  take  coloring  from  the  associates.    It  is 


J 


SAMUEL  8A  WBONES,  M.  D. 


21 


not  possible  for  woman  to  work  and  associate  daily  with 
man  and  remain  niilaintcd  by  bis  free,  independent  moral 
obligations.  In  business  she  imbibes  his  spirit  of  barter 
and  gain;  in  polities  she  enters  into  the  eorriiption  of 
the  campaign  with  the  same  cheers;  in  religion  slu; 
gradually  aeeepts  his  infidelity,  his  easy  virtue,  his 
free-love  doctrine.  The  girl  thrown  with  man  throuv,h 
her  daily  life  helping  in  sliaring  his  business,  will  in 
years  grow  much  the  same  religious,  moral,  social  views 
that  are  practiced  and  preached  by  him.  Some  monster 
woman  will  say,  'And  what  if  she  should?'  (Jod  forbid! 
is  all  I  have  to  say.  Do  not  let  the  days  of  chivalry  pass 
by  your  dreams.  You  want  the  strong  arm  of  a  knight 
about  you,  and  it  is  the  more  dear  if  there  for  protec- 
tion than  if  for  mating.  It  is  very  silly  for  a  woman 
to  say  or  think  she  will  excomnnmieate  herself  from  mon- 
ster man.  But  we  all  know  man's  intercourse  with  man 
leads,  drags  to  a  break  in  every  one  of  the  command- 
ments. We  realize  that  all  oit'spri ng  must  receive  its 
endowment  for  the  keeping  of  the  Ten  Commandments 
from  a  non-corrupt  motherhood.  A  saint  and  a  devil 
may  rear  at  least  half  their  oifspring  saints.  Above  all 
things,  there  is  no  need  that  you  grow  yourselves  man- 
like. Inventions  and  its  machinery  are  taking  the  bur- 
dens off  man's  shoulders  while  he  may  take  it  off  yours. 
He  can  best  prepare  the  eat  and  drink;  he  can  best  make 
3^our  coat  and  gowns.  He  needs  woman  simply  to  per- 
petuate the  race  and  supply  him  rest  after  the  wearv 
toil.  Give  up  the  funny  talk  that  you  do  not  need  man. 
But  he  does  not  want  a  partnership  in  business." 

"Dear   doctor,   do  you  not   lead   'way   off   from   type- 
writers and  stenographers — lead  off  to  woman's  rights?'' 

"No;  for  they  are  the  elementary  school   of  woman's 
rights;  professional   women  are    its    high    school;    dis- 


THE  DECLINE  AND  FALL  Of 


grnntled  married  women  are  the  alumni  of  the  institu- 
tion." 

"Well,  T  know,  oh,  so  many  nice  fj^irls  who  arc  enj;ago(l 
in  typewriting  that  I  would  not  object  being  classed  witli 
them." 

"Yes,  I  know  a  hundred  good  girls  thus  engaged,  ])uf 
I  know  a  dozen  bad  ones,  and  is  not  that  a  fearful  per 
cent,  for  innocent  creatures  to  stray  from  ways  of  woman- 
hood? 


r.  I 


nstitu- 

1  witli 

(1,  but 
111  por 
oman- 


'»   ». 


i 


)   y 


«     I 


!   i 


I,   i    i! 


A 

2 


If      I 


I 


a  .     .-•*-.*      *  •  **-. 


.1!^  *  fm  ■%— .- ^-= 


tiAMUEL  JAWBONES,  M.  D, 


88 


EARLY  ALASKA  DIGGINGS. 


4 


ai 


H 

o 


IMoNKKHs  to  llu>  lower  Yukon,  Ahiska,  were  not  wont 
to  go  Via  the  j)iiss('ri  Troni  the  present  Dyca  and  Skajnviiy 
and  down  tlirou^di  the  lakes.  They  were  in  part  afraid 
of  the  treacherous  navigation  by  boat,  and  lacked  capac- 
ity by  dogs  and  sleds,  for  the  long  journey  more  than 
consumed  thi-ir  gruh,  while  for  want  of  dried  fish  their 
dogs  often  starved,  and  for  want  of  tlu'  dogs  themselves 
might  starve.  Dr.  Samuel  Sawbones,  bag  ami  baggage, 
shipped  aboard  a  steamer  from  the  coast,  and  in  three 
v/eeks  was  in  the  mouth  of  the  Yukon  Kiver  bound  up 
that  stream.  Ilis  diary  of  the  trip  is  neither  funny  nor 
instructive.  He  found  the  natives  on  the  baid-c  of  that 
river  paying  penance  through  the  same  affeclions  poor 
white  folks  in  the  States  were  subjected  to.  Grippe  was 
shaking  them  out  of  their  moccasins  into  the  ice-bound 
silent  rest  just  the  same.  Of  course  ho  scattered  his 
pills  and  pukes  from  the  charity  chest.  The  experience 
was  interesting  and  the  pay,  we  all  know,  is  to  come 
in  the  by  and  by!  As  he  arrived  in  the  nay  streak  or 
gold  belt  of  Alaska  he  had  his  hobnailed  boots  elect ro- 
])lated,  that  he  might  gather  up  nuggets  in  his  walks 
and  wanderings.  Of  course  he  daily  examined,  but  the 
amalgam  panned  out  nothing  for  a  long  season.  Circle 
City  was  swimming  around  like  a  Hying  Jennie.  The 
gold  from  Birch  Creek  was  weighed  out  to  the  commer- 
cial companions,  to  the  saloon  keepers,  aiul  to  the  wenches 
as  the  dogs  packed  it  into  town;  then  it  flowed  through 
the  freaks  of  the  whirlpool  and  scarcely  ever  was  at  re;it. 
Thus  the  thousands— one,  two,  ten,  twenty — from  each 


F 


24 


THE  DECLINE  AND  FALL  OF 


\l     'i 


minor  gildod  tliis  city  to  a  glory  that  rod  paint  would  nood 
l)o\v  down  before.  Jiircli  Creek  is  Huiiiiiier  di<];gings,  bar 
(!i^'<;iii;^fs,  and  niinerrf  had  n()thin<jf  to  do  the  loii;^  winter 
months  pave  revel  and  i)a('k  tlieir  j,'rub  sixty  niile.s  out  to 
canip  for  pumnier  work;  this  on  tiieir  backs  or  with  dog 
(earns,  dej)cnding  whieli  upon  the  miner's  temperament. 
Ij'  a  elieerful  giver  in  his  temple  of  worship,  usually  ho 
would  about  the  ending  of  winter  resolve  himself  into 
a  pack  mule  and  grub  his  cache  on  liireh  Creek.  Samuel 
fell  into  nothing — not  into  any  gold  mines  nor  yet  into 
the  fell  vortex  of  the  population.  "Signs  are  promising" 
was  all  he  could  write  to  the  girl  he  left  belli nd,  and  she, 
poor  dear,  could  only  boo-hoo !  over  her  dreary  wait  for 
the  cold,  cold  beyond. 

But  matters  grew  better  and  Samuel  wrote  his  dear 
such  letters  as  only  his  loving,  faithful  fingers  could 
pen.  It  seemed  from  these  that  the  frost  of  this  arctic 
zone  drove  all  the  warmth  of  his  being  fnmi  the  surface 
to  his  heart,  and  he  poured  it  out  to  the  girl.  It  was 
foolisli  wooing,  but  poor  Samuel  was  untutored.  Ho 
would   say : 


"Gentle  ^Maiden:  The  gold  I  am  in  search  of  slowly 
fills  my  sack — dust,  mucli  of  it,  and  as  foul  here  as  in 
this  camp,  in  its  use  and  iniluenco  iis  the  foulest  of 
well-trodden  dust  of  your  streets;  yet  well  sprinkled  with 
nuggets,  which  suggest  a  loftier  spheres  These  nuggets 
measure  in  size  and  magnificence  a  degree  which  in- 
fluences one  to  worship  them,  yet  not  one  of  the  great- 
est nor  all  together  approiulies  thee,  my  own  sweetheart, 
in  glory,  brightness,  in  worthiness  of  worsliip,  and  I  bow 
down  before  them  only  second — after  praying  for  you." 

And  the  dear,  good  thing  would  only  answer  in  a  more 
distressed  humor: 


••■I 


li, 


■,j<---C?/  ■ 


SAMUEL  SA  WnONES,  M.  D. 


25 


-» 


Islowly 
as  in 
"st   of 
with 
iiggets 
[h   in- 
Igroat- 
eart, 
bow 
|you." 

more 


"My  Own  Dkar  Doctor:  Come  homo  to  mo  now.  I 
know  tho  fiovonty  degrees  of  frost  will  not  freeze  you; 
I  know  the  dust  of  that  fro/.tii  Xorlh  will  not  corrupt 
you;  but  oh,  my  d(>ar  Samuel,  y(mr  chiefest  liope,  your 
earthly  ])ri(le  and  i,lory  may  elude  you,  may  bo  dis- 
missed your  s])liere  through  blieer  agonizing  over  your^ 
absence  and  loving  inihuMice.  'Pake  pity  on  your  cliief- 
est  desi.re  and  strive  to  hold  it  fast.  'r('mi)tations,  too, 
are  strong  about  me,  yet  tliey  only  give  mc  power  while 
your  absence  robs  me  of  strength." 

And  no  cooing  in  their  wooing?  Xotliing  like  other 
simpletons?  Oh,  yes,  but  that  we  leave  out.  Samuel 
would  try  to  excite  a  mite  of  jealousy  by  relatiug  little 
(lirtations  with  the  non-festive  Kskiiiio  ni;iid,  while  his 
little  maid  outside  liinted  from  time  to  time  of  little  sly 
glances  from  leisure  gentk'men  of  the  town.  Nothing 
serious  haj)pencd  until  one  day  Samuel  received  u  type- 
written letter.  It  was  pitiable  to  see  the  poor  beggar 
after  that.  A  love-letter  written  on  a  typewriter!  Yes, 
in  fact.  It  was  full  of  endearments.  It  was  a  hot  miin- 
ber  in  so  far  as  heat  and  fervor  wei-e  usually  exilianged, 
but  written  on  the  typewriter!  Did  you  ever  receive  a 
letter  from  your  sweetheart  so  written?  Xo !  Then  you 
cannot  know  how  much  a  blizzard  it  is  to  receive  a  love- 
letter  written  upon  a  typewriter.  You  may  contemphilc 
tho  position  without  my  further  discussing  the  lion-or-. 
Poor  Sawbones  barely  survived  the  shock,  but  as  the  win- 
ter season  had  closed  in,  leaving  him  till  tlie  next  spriiii:^ 
without  exchange  of  letters,  he  was  by  that  time  so  far 
recovered  as  to  answer  uncomplainingly.  During  the 
winter  he  had  stored  up  many  passages  and  quotations 
of  love,  many  beautiful  thoughts  from  the  brains  of  other 
men — other  fanciful,  poetic  natures.     He  had  these  set 


pi 


> 


2G 


TUl'J  VICCLINK  AyD  FALL  OF 


in  order,  nrran^'cd  to  do  tlio  most  f^nod  nnd  to  express 
in  hi^'hc'fit  color  one  so  jilacfd  us  Id  he  ciijuiblu  of  loving 
tliG  little  mouse  which  iii^'htly  nosed  nhoiil  liis  ciibin  and 
stolo  his  scant  cache  of  su;,Mr — to  paint  sucli  one's  loi)j;in<,'S 
and  hopes,  in  addition  was  sonu'tliiii;^  of  a  bu,;in('s,«4 
resume.  'J'hcri  lie  added  io  Ihc  manuscript  u  litth'  story. 
Ouc  Byrne,  a  Inniiorisl  of  his  own  town,  had  preceded 
liini  to  tlic  north,  and  tliey  met  at  Forty  ^fi!e.  Byrne 
was  pucccssfuUv  minin;'  at  tlie  liead  of  Forty  .Mile  ei>'ek 

(  <j  »-■ 

and  came  to  tliat  camp  for  su[)plies.  Byrne  tohl  him 
of  a  former  visit  from  tlio  camp  diggings  to  Forty  Mile 
camp,     lie  proceeded  tlius: 

"You  know,  several  years  hack,  every  item  of  news 
was  montl)  to  mouth.  Oidy  a  few  brief  montlis  during 
the  summer  brought  letters  or  papers,  and  every  man 
Avas  expected  to  lie  a  public  bulletin.  Well,  I  had  ob- 
served tlie  popularity  and  the  gracious  standing  the  news- 
monger held  in  eami)  and  resolved  to  i)r()nL  by  it.  At 
Forty  ^lile,  a  suf)ply  camp  on  the  Yukon,  I  met  a  hun- 
dred old-timers — miners  here,  as  I  was,  for  a  supply.  Of 
course — 

"*Any  news,  Byrne?' 

"*No;  only  as  I  came  by  the  Forks  there  was  a  little 
furore.  They  had  had  a  fire  there  the  night  before. 
You  all  know  Belle  Fawkes?' 

"Yes,  they  all  knew  her,  as  she  had  been  in  this  coun- 
try four  years. 

"  'Well,  her  cabin  got  on  fire,  and  the  next  day  noth- 
ing only  a  mound  of  charcoal  and  a  little  heap  of  poor 
Belle's  bones  were  to  be  found.  And  old  Sykes,  fore- 
most in  the  rescue,  had  one  eye  scorched  out  and  is  crip- 
pled for  the  whole  m  ning  season.  We  ought  to  take 
up  a  collection  for  old  Sykes.' 

''Then  the^r  bung  about  my  neck  and  plied  me  with 


SAMUEL  SA  W BONKS,   M.  D. 


w 


coiin- 


noth- 

poor 

forc- 

crip- 

tako 


with 


drinks  and  disrusscd  a  sulis(  riplion  for  poor  Svkos. 
After  a  few  lu'ci-s  the  ciiiiip  jtricd  riiitlifr  into  my  in- 
teresting fi'Jiturt'S  of  iicws-^iillicrin,!,',  iind  I  was  coinpcllcd 
to  advance  my  popularity. 

"'At  home,  too,  vc  had  ratluT  an  unpleasantness. 
You  know,  up  iIki'i'  wr  have  some  of  the  <thl  Montana 
vi^nhmtes.  Well,  thry  ima;^Mncd  they  would  die  an  um- 
gh)rious  (kath  unless  thi'y  created  some  new  life  wilh.in 
tliemselves,  so  liiey  lassoed  jioor  Soui'i<rout  I'cn,  who  had 
in  reality  cleaned  up  some  of  the  (dclics  while  we  wen* 
at  work.  I>ul  jtoor  l»en  is  siiiftless  and  deserved  clmi- 
eney,  yet  the  vi;,nlantes  would  not  extend  it.  They  han,i:ed 
him,  and  I  liave  in  my  knapsack  the  last  will  and  testa- 
ment to  send  to  his  <leserted  family.' 

"Of  course  the  whole  evenini;  was  made  riotous,  and 
every  man  at  camp  extended  me  his  hosj)ilality  for  tla^ 
rest  of  my  stay.  Certaiidy  each  of  these  alTairs  was  told 
in  detail  and  with  vai'iations  so  as  to  make  a  shoi't  story 
Ion;,'.  Next  day  when  lack  of  excitement  all'orded  o)t- 
portunity  I  detailed  sojue  casuallies  from  over  thoran,i;(». 

"After  this  woeful  detail  I  was  not  permitted  to  mu.-li 
a  do^^  My  ^(oods  were  loaded,  my  do;4S  fed  on  the  fat 
of  the  canij).  and  a  perfect  ovation  was  ^iven  nu;  until  I 
was  paraded  many  miles  out  on  the  trail  toward  home. 
Of  course  hefore  I  was  detected  a  ^reat  liar,"  concluded 
Myrno,  "other  events  W(>re  the  suhject  of  gossip  and  1 
was  not  the  least  in  disgrace." 

In  the  spring-time,  early  in  dune,  Samuel  Sawhones' 
epistles,  Tnanuscri|)t,  reports  were  on  the  trail,  rushing 
down  tlio  Yukon  for  the  outside.  And  early  in  -Inly  the 
loving  missives,  gossiping  chatter,  and  personal  notes  of 
Miss  Nella  passed  the  ahove  in  the  Behring  Sea  on  their 
way.  I  will  not  pretend  to  note  the  reception  at  each  end. 
Dr.  Sawbones  had  intuitivencss,  latterly  called  mind-read- 


2d 


THE  TiKdUNK  AND  FALL  OP 


in^,  by  which  \\v.  arcunilcly  fl^^urcd  i\\v  now  role  of  his 
iiiMinorala.  Sht'  still  was  (l.yiiij,'  from  ^liccr  want  of  him, 
rroM!  the  al)scti{'0  of  his  h)V('  and  air«'(tiun  and  his  Hoft, 
sjwcct,  lender  care  and  his  dejicale,  nootlii?!^  professional 
<»niees!  lUit  she  had  tiiken  to  stenn;^'rai)liy  and  ty|te\vril- 
in^  l't)r  a  vocation.  Slif  had  a  |iositi<»n  in  a  mining;  hro- 
kers'  olliee  and  was — well,  rather  Khockt d  at  first;  yet  so 
shrewd,  in^'enious,  Interestin;^'  were  the  mining  manipula- 
tions that  she  was  compelled  to  admin;  the  brains,  tlio 
spirits  who  conceived  and  executed  the  deeds,  tlif  f)lots, 
Iho  scliemes.  She  inclosed  the  following  duplicate  coj)y 
of  one  of  her  dictated  letters: 


"John  T)oi;,  1vs(^,  Sourkrout  (Julch. 

"Dear  i^ir:  j'.c  prepared  for  a  visit  from  some  Eastern 
capitalists  who  have  in  contemphition  the  purchase  of  tlio 
proju'rty  you  represeid  for  us.  1  hereby  send  you  a  sack 
of  gold-dust,  which  y<>u  will  please  shoot  into  or  ollier- 
wise  iiicorporiitv'  with  the  several  exposed  points  of  tlio 
ledge.  Do  this  carefully,  as  they  have  a  pretentious  ox- 
pert  with  them,  aiul  the  ])rice  of  the  miiu*  <loes  not  jus- 
tify our  interviewing  this  oxi)ert.  I  also  send  you  du- 
plicate ore  sacks  for  samples;  tlioy  will  ))ring  the  corre- 
sponding sacks  with  them.  Till  these  with  your  riclicst 
samples  and  have  I  hem  ready  in  like  trim  to  those  tliey 
may  fdl  for  themselves.  While  at  lunch  or  at  drinks  see 
tliat  your  most  expert  help  makes  an  excliange  of  these 
sacks.  Much  will  d(>pend  upon  this  being  skillfully  done. 
J  need  not,  however,  advise  you  in  detail,  as  1  know  your 
capacity  for  this  work.  llespecl fully, 

"KiciiAUD  Itoii:." 


-/ 


•  ' ' 


Many  things  in  this  last  scries  of  letters  pronounced 
this  girl  as  having  a  shade  of  the  "New  Woman."    She 


[<  i' 


SA  }n!KL  8 A  ]VHO\KS,   .V.  I). 


2'.» 


ox- 

jllS- 

'du- 
irro- 
■liost 
tlioy 

;   SCO 

lioso 

loiio. 

our 


She 


ni  first  wns  scriou.-Iy  cmluirrasscd  in  tlu>  ntinnspliorc  whidi 
Hiirrouiulcd  Iut,  \\ii>  da/ctl,  ii:id  licr  coiihciriui'  lir()ii;;lil 
Iht  io  conrc^ioii.  Iiiit  latrr  diitc  ('xliiliiU'd  (lie  diiilv  liiic- 


tur"  and  coDsciiui-nt  iircscrvat dhi  oI  iiuiid  in  all  Ww  <lii!it'S 
imposed — frauds,  di'Insions,  villainies,  and)itions,  ;,'ani- 
l)lin;(s,  stj'aiin'r,  e')!i( m  1im|  ;i:id  distriluitcd  lIirou,L,di  tin' 
ollico.  No,  no.  Not  one  hair  upon  her  hcud  uii>  lii'ut 
upon  any  oilier  lli;m  wonuiidy  virtues,  and  lier  la«tes  and 
instincts  reliillcd  n;;ainsl  even  niinin;;  slan;,';  yet  ln-r 
heart,  at  one  lime  would  have  hinkm  to  lia\i'  hccn  wit- 
ness of  her  fellow-ereatures  ^M•aspin^^  ntealiii^'  one  from 
the  other.  r»ut  as  the  sailor  boy  partakes  (d'  the  s\va;:,irer 
of  all  other  sailors,  the  soldier  j)arades  in  all  the  stalc- 
liiu'ss  of  his  whole  hattalion,  the  barber  assumes  the 
power  of  (|iiiz  and  ;;ossip  attaitird  by  no  other  trade,  thus 
must  our  heroine  ;,m'ow  caste  from  the  unserupub)us  devils 
usually  en,<,M,Lre(l  as  "promoters'"  in  minini;  ojH'rations. 
Aiul  she  could  iidi'rsperse  litr  love-h'tters  to  Samuel  with 
"interest in;^"'  miiiin^f  ventures  and  lunc  no  thoii^dit  thty 
nii;,dit  crash  hi<  poor  lieart  tl»rou;,di  her  lellinix.  'hit  he 
could  smile  oMr  the  followin*^  liistory  she  related  to  her 
last  knowled;jr<>,  for  ho  reco^Mii/ed  characters,  'j'hree  irreat 
lieads — a  (|uondam  preacher,  a  (piack  (bxtor,  and  a  de- 
funct bank(T — perpetrated  a  steal  fioni  a  colony  of  Penn- 
sylvania (^)uakers  who  seemed  to  be  the  ;,'reenest  })ossiblo 
eomniunity  the  ]>arty  of  th(>  first  part  could  discover.  An 
I  Id  worn-out  placer  «li;,fi,''in;;"  in  Seven-up  INte  (iulch  served 
the  decoy  ])urj)ose.  We  had  known  it  to  be  (jiiil(»  woi'ked 
out  and  abandoned  years  before.  This  symlieafe  (the 
nico  term  assumed  by  tlie!ns(>lves)  sfpiatted  upon,  resur- 
rected this  "di.u'iriufr,''  flumed  it,  watercil  it,  salted  it 
with  bou<^dden  dust,  ami  sold  it  to  tlio  IMiiladelphians  for 
a  cash  consideration  of  $"5,000.  This  is  not  a  lu<^  minin<,' 
deal  and  a  rich  syndicate  could  not  fuel  it,  but  that  sum 


l.i;; 


30 


THl']  DECLINE  AND  FALL  OF 


tl 


invested  in  a  mine  lliat  was  not  and  eould  not  bo  worth 
.$!,()0()  illustrates  what  fools  some  mortals  arc  and  what 
r(t;,Mies  are  others.  Tlip  ori<^iiial  syndicate  was  accorded 
the  mana.i^^'meiit  of  this  jihice,  and  after  adding  $80,000 
to  the  ori.irinal  sum  as  (lev('loi)ing  fund  the  com))any  was 
sold  out  for — the  entire  pr(j})erty  of  the  company — the 
value  of  the  sluice-hoxes,  one  or  two  hundred  ilollars. 


•H        I 


"My  I)i:ar  T)r.  Samuel  Sawbones:  The  turmoil  of 
this  odice  makes  wriliiii;  else  than  of  business  a  burden. 
Out  of  the  olhcc  my  thoimhts  turn  to  you.  yet  my  head 
is  racked  by  dictation  of  mammoth  deals  which  won't 
give  way  to  all'airs  of  the  heart.  Yes,  T  write  to  assure 
you  I  await  your  calling.  My  duties  here,  I  am  aware, 
do  not  meet  your  approval  nor  my  associations  accord  with 
your  humor,  but  you  will  comi)rehend  my  clinging  to  it 
when  you  learn  the  j)ossibilities  annexed.  I  have  invested 
in  shares  in  the  l>()iiaii/a  Chief  and  hojie  ere  long  to  ])ro- 
vido  you  what  you  deserve — a  ])osition  of  wealth — and 
to  allure  you  home  again.  \  hunger  for  you  when  I 
think  of  you  eating  dried  fish  spiced  wiih  icicles  in  the 
arctic  circle,  with  nothing  to  sweeten  these  save  recol- 
lections of  the  past  and  anticipations  of  the  future." 

And  with  this  letter  poor  Samuel's  hot  biscuits  raised — 
swelled  up  in  his  stomach  without  need  of  baking  ])owdcr. 
lie  saw  the  autumn  sun  each  day  cut  out  fifteen  minutes 
more  oJ  the  light,  and  he  saw  this  star  reaching  avt'ay 
from  him,  leaving  more  dai'kiiess  in  his  seail. 

"Hie  dan\ned  mining  sharks,"  remai-ked  he  to  his 
friend,  '"have  hypnotized  by  their  ju'ocoss  of  suggestion 
the  ])oor  girl  and  ai'e  I'obbing  her.  Oh,  how  much  more 
honorable  ones  alxxle  hei'e  among  the  untutored  Eskimo 
than  among  such  evil  spirits  as  these  natives  would  exor- 
cise themselves  of." 


SAMUEL  SAWBONES,  M.  D. 


81 


0(1— 

v'dor. 

lutcs 

iwiiy 

his 

i 

A  ion 

novo 

1 

V 

imo 

■if 

xor- 

lie  (lid  Tint  Inmoiil.  nor  fninc,  nor  frcl.  TTc  wrote  that 
his  dried  salmon  and  canned  foods  were  so  seasoned  by 
lier  love  that  (>ach  meal  was  a  feast,  and  that  every  dream 
was  as  near  heaven  as  perlVct  di^i^estiou  eonld  make  it. 
Samuel  is  not  a  iji'eat  liar,  l)Ut  it  \-'-  r.r.t  the  way  in  lovo 
to  abandon  hope;  therefore  he  should  not  exhibit  despair. 
He  believes  the  true  nature  of  wonum  is  to  l)e  manipu- 
lated, grown,  sculptured  into  any  po.-sible  shaj)e,  or  thing, 
or  end — only  nece.->ary  a  skillful  artist,  lie  says:  "Oidy 
can  this  idea  fail  when  there  are  anonuilies  in  her  anat- 
omv  or  degeneration  in  her  nerve  centers.''  And  thus 
their  love  ])rogressed  anprogressively  while  their  lives 
plodded  on  at  full  gallop.  The  excitement  of  the  Klon- 
dike snatched  Samuel  up  into  i!s  whirlpool,  and  the  final 
stampede  of  January,  1897,  found  him  in  its  ranks.  This 
M-ent  from  Circle  City  in  great  stiite.  Circle's  most  mag- 
nificent women  w'th  gorgeous  dog  teams  headed  the  pro- 
cession. The  miiu  .'s  of  iJireh  Creek  district  wintering  in 
town  joined  the  stampede  and  gave  it  backbone;  only  three 
souls  of  three  thousand  remained  in  Circle  City,  and  none 
returned  to  tell  the  tale  for  long  months  after.  From 
this  the  Klondike  was  started  on  its  record  of  world- 
beater. 

A'ery  few  of  these  original  locators  own  a  claim 
or  own  a  dollar.  Also,  many  of  the  bonanza  claims  were 
not  paying,  and  the  early  birds  did  not  all  get  good, 
healthy  worms.  Dawson  sprang  uj)  as  the  mining  camp 
center,  and  of  course  more  life  was  exhibited  here  tliis 
first  season  than  on  the  mining  dump.  Uy  the  time  of 
the  spring  clean-up  "bonanza  claim  owner"  did  not  mean 
or  read  "gold  king.''  Dr.  Sawbones  found  it  agreeable  to 
rustle,  as  was  ever  his  wont  and  as  was  the  law  of  the 
planet  under  which  ho  was  born.  Xo  doubt  he  was  sub- 
stituting his  original  ice  castles  by  air  castles,  and  these 


If 


32 


77/a;  decline  and  fall  of 


»  . 

1  ■ 


!(>' 


.    J: 


i 


1). 


if  X     > 

li    'f  ' 


were  to  be  built  of  dust — nufjgcts  of  gold.  No  doubt  he 
cliiiincd  right,  tillo,  and  fuUliorily  to  protect  and  cherish 
llic  i^aiiie  femininity  who  so  fast  is  growing  in  mind  to 
paddle  lier  own  canoe.  JltT  last  sad  rites  had  been  to  no- 
tify him  she  had  joined  the  woman's  rights.     Oh!  oh  I  oh! 

"(fOod  Lord  have  mercy  upon  not  mc,  but  her,  ])oor 
girl.  Xo,  this  is  not  the  iiitluence  of  those  bold,  base 
men.  but  of  those  half-hrccd  woiniMi  of  her  town.  Oh, 
yes,  I  can  see  tlie  nasty  things  in  l)recehes,  for  they  must, 
being  doctors  and  lawyers  and  helpmates  to  impecunious 
disappointed  men,  trudge  about  as  Ave — of  course  with 
skirts  overtop.  Yes,  J  can  see  them  (ill  her  full  of  tomfool 
truck  which  they  emphasize  'woman's  wisdom,'  Svoman's 
rights.'  and  so  fortli.  Well,  ujjon  mature  reflection  it 
amuses  her  and  don't  hurt  me,  so  why  should  I  wail?  I 
wonder,  though,  when  she  comes  up  here,  if  she  will  preach 
or  teach  woman's  ri'dits  to  the  native  women,  and  I  won- 
der  how  it  would  work  among  them?  ]f  Skookum  Jim 
comes  home  and  ilnds  his  squaw  has  not  chopped  the  wood 
or  carried  the  water  and  has  partaken  of  her  dried  salmon 
without  a  pow-wow,  I  wonder  if  he  will  not  exorcise  the 
woman's  right  through  a  beating  and  a  howl?  Oh,  well, 
I  will  abide  my  time." 

Thus  spoke  Dr.  Samuel,  but  still  he  would  not  quiet. 
lie  persisted  in  battering  the  woman's  rights  mantle  with 
such  little  nuggets  as  lay  before  him.  It  Avas  cited,  "Na- 
ture surrounds  us  with  examples  of  female  equality  and 
predominance,''  but  he  calls  for  cases.  "The  most  in- 
dustrious ami  worthy  among  insect  lift' — the  busy  bee — 
has  only  a  queen  and  no  king."  Ah,  yes.  And  was  this 
beautifid  queen  ever  known  to  diverge  from  the  true  fem- 
inine path — that  of  procreating  the  species?  No  other 
queen  is  so  worshiped,  so  guarded,  and  all  this  through 
instinctive  adoration  of  motherly  virtues.     Not  the  least 


■ 


SAMUEL  SAWBONES,  M.  D. 


88 


uiet. 

with 

'Xa- 

and 

in- 

co — ■ 

this 

fcm- 

Ithor 

ugh 

least 


of  their  lovin;^  attention?  i?  in  llio  art  of  tlip  liivo  kco[)- 
incc  n  platoon  of  hvv?  over  ami  ;iiion  (liroiii^li  rdic^fs:,  as 
our  soldier  soiitrv,  fanning'  llif  ;iir  wiiliin  tlinMi'^h  a 
jirorcs-  dT  viltratiii^u;  llicir  wiiiu^-,  thus  sccuriiii;  a  change 
v.'ith  the  fr*'sii  air  onlsidc  So  niiiny  nice  lhin,<,^-!  inu>l  ho 
told  of  the  hce,  but  the  nicest  of  .-ill  niii-t  he  .-aid  of  the 
simple,  matronly  olfiee  of  the  queen.  And  why  is  not  the 
nasty  \cnomou,s  .^spider  recited.  'V\\o  ywWw^  .spirit  hero 
is  tlie  female.  She  lowers  above  her  nmie  in  a  degree 
that  leaves  no  question  as  to  who  is  b)rd  and  ninstcr.  She 
finishes  tlie  neee>>ary  ovation  for  the  ruri'icraiice  of  her 
species  M-iih  a  hunger,  rajiacity,  that  only  ,-;ives  her  niato 
a  disastrous  end  from  his  capacity  to  esciipe  in  llight. 
There,  yes,  it  lately  has  been  discovered  thiit  1!h^  female 
is  the  bead,  the  lead(T  in  anoilier  av.iiiinl  colony.  The 
leader  of  a  flock  of  wild  geese  is  feminine.  The  Hock  of 
chattering  ^ocf-Q  overhead — ah.  aos.  v,(^  can  eiisily  com- 
prehend a  female  inlluence.  Tlie  ruling  ])ower  of  only 
poor  silly  geese!  "But  more  scM'ious,"  i:nnounces  Dr. 
Sawbones,  "we  arc  approached  with  claims  iliat  woman  is 
the  brighter  orb,  therefore  should  shine  in  the  human 
firmament,  should  lighten  it.  Should  I  sny  this  is  ig- 
norance or  delusion?  Deductions  are  drawn  from  sup- 
posed cases.  Womankind  mistake  pivcoeity  for  ])ro- 
fundiiy.  The  female  is  precocious.  This  exhibits  early 
in  her  teens  Avhen  she  outstrips  b(>r  boy  jiai'd  and  over- 
to])S  him.  From  this  springs  her  conceit.  I  will  not  dis- 
cuss why  the  Cri'aloi'  thought  best  to  create  us.  but  dis- 
cuss the  fact  as  it  stand-.  Tak(^  the  slio!'l-distaiu-(>  horse, 
the  female  distances  the  male  iu  the  teens.  At  twenty 
she  has  accumulated  all  \\ov  cbarms  and  matured  her 
brain.  Armed  with  a  finislieil  education  and  stored  with 
housekeeping  experience,  she  is  in  her  bridal  gown  waiting 
for  the  youth  who  ten  years  before  was   in  his  college 


m 


34 


THE  DECLINE  AND  FALL  OP 


i  K 


1.      'I*- 


gown,  who  five  years  since  was  nailinf;  up  his  professional 
hhiiigh^  or  nu'rehandise  sign  or  opening  his  liandiwork 
}-1i<ip,  and  now  at  thirty,  the  present  time,  presumes  to  lead 
!'(•!•  a  journey  tlirough  wliat  is  left  of  life.  She  at  twenty, 
lie  at  thirty,  arc  fairly  ecjnal.  She  at  thirty,  lie  at  forty, 
are  equivalent.  She  at  forly,  he  at  fifty,  are  heginning  a 
divergence.  She  at  forty-five  hegins  a  halt;  he  at  lifty- 
five  is  in  his  mental  prime  and  little  past  his  })]iysieal 
best.  She  at  fifty  is  getting  old  and  serves  well  oidy  the 
odice  of  grandmother,  while  he  at  sixty,  though  a  little 
tottering  in  step,  does  his  very  hest  business.  She  at 
sixty,  seventy,  eighty,  except  that  she  grows  feeble  in 
])ody,  runs  a  very  level  race  Tie  at  seventy  is  coming  down 
off  his  percli  to  uieet  her,  and  soon  thereafter  they  are 
traveling  again  hand  in  hand.  Therefore,  ye  aspiring 
maid,  look  well  to  this  curve  in  the  line  of  life.  You 
take  an  early  beautiful  leap  up  into  your  own  horizon. 
There  you  strive  with  a  master  for  a  fi'w  bi-icf  years  more. 
Then  you  must  be  satisfied  willi  a  basking  in  the  sunshine 
of  the  orb  tli.-.t  has  kept  on  and  up — satisfied  until  nat- 
ural exliaustion  sheers  it  again  within  your  ])ath.  Xo, 
no.  You  caniu)t  follow  tlie  life-curve  of  man.  We  will 
allow  many  exceptions,  hut  nothin;,'  tlint  npproaclies  a 
rule,  and  on  the  general  ])rinciple  of  l)reeding  and  hus- 
biindiy  these  excej)tio]is,  tliese  women  wlio  most  approach 
the  mental  capacity  of  man — or,  if  you  choose,  who  rise 
liighest  in  literary  attainments — sliould  not  be  rushed  ofC 
into  jdaces  which  she  nuiy  fill,  l)ut  which  have  no  demand 
for  her.  It  is  fittest  that  she,  too,  should  be  devoted, 
should  be  sacrificed,  in  the  lamentable  woi'ds  of  the  so- 
ciety, to  the  improvement  of  the  stock.  It  is  only  fool 
talk  to  say  that  she  can  fill  all  the  ofTices  of  men  and  all 
tlie  offices  of  women  too.  It  is  all  well  to  grow  our  girls 
into  queens,  but  let  us  decree  that  they  shall  live  to  beget 


.-i 


H 


SAMUEL  SA  WBONES,  M.  D.  35 

fo  proe,.a,o  the  ...e^r,::^ :;'::;  ::;r:?'""^ 

less  (0  argue  Ihat  she  can  be  hul-c    i     J  ■"■" 

politician,  and  .noll.er  too  "  "'  ^    ^'  ^''''^''"'  ^'"''°'- 

mcso  last  may  „ot  have  even   started   ll.e  hearl   „f   1,;. 
n.a,den,  the  gold  f.ver  of  (he  Klon.liko    li,         ,1      ! 
mimng  world.     .More  ,l,a„  thai,  it  started  „„''. 
errand  seores  and   thousands  of  all  J     '  Ti         /'J 

■er;ant.  1  say  fools  errand,"  because  anv  and  all  n„r 
sons  e.eept  hardy,  e.perieneed  n.iners  u-h'go  on  su  h 
stampedes  are  either  fools,  idiots,  or  knaves. 


h,. 


V. 


■* 


11 


\U\ 


30 


TUB  VECLINE  AND  FALL  OF 


FORT  GET  THERE. 

OXE  of  the  trading  posts  at  St.  jVIiclmels,  in  Ucliring 
Sea,  is  known  as  Fort  (jict  Tlicrc. 

Very  appropriate  iiKJecd,  for  every  voyager  by  sea  to 
tlie  unknown  Alas^ka  sets  his  face  first  to  Fort  Cet  There. 
Leaving  the  Pacific  coast,  there  is  only  one  little  beam  of 
snnshine,  Dutch  Harbor,  to  cross  the  checrle^^s,  chilly;, 
dreary  sail  before  we  get  there.  And  th(.'n  when  I  first 
got  there  I  wanted  to  get  away  without  the  waste  of  a 
day's  time.  1  never  was  in  a  place  the  whole  of  my  long 
life  from  which  I  wanted  to  get  out,  from  which  1  wanted 
to  escape,  from  which  I  prayed  to  be  delivered,  so  muca 
as  from  Fort  (Jet  There,  at  St.  ^Michaels — this  miserable, 
mixed  big  Indian  and  little  Indian  camp;  the  big  In- 
dians being  the  two  trading  company  outfits  and  the 
little  Indians  bcin^  the  native  l*]skimos. 

Well,  I  must  go  back  to  Seattle  and  get  there  later. 

It  is  possible  to  make  the  navigation  route  to  the  Klon- 
dike one  of  comfort,  one  of  interest — maybe  one  of  luxury — 
but  the  ^'ukon  ti-ading  companies  had  not  yet,  in  my  time, 
entered  into  the  possibilities.  They  had  quite  too  much 
to  do  with  im])ossibles.  Of  course  we  emigrants,  scarcely 
at  sea,  began  regidatiojis  for  the  company  transporting  us, 
but  we  were  all  dumped  along  the  shores  of  the  Yukon  ere 
we  perfected  any  scheme  said  company  chose  to  eh'ct. 

It  would  be  nice  in  me  to  call  ourselves  ])rospc(;tors 
rather  than  emigrants,  hut  T  was  seized  with  consternation 
upon  my  first  review  of  the  ship's  cargo.  The  brawny, 
sturdy   bone   and   sinew   demanded   by   the   fierce,   cold, 


■!^ 


% 


I  V, 


w 


imo, 
Inioli 

■(•oly 

r  ns, 

ere 


SAMUEL  SA  WD0NE8,  M.  D. 


37 


<f 


riiggod  Alaska  wns  scarroly  an  olcniont  in  Iho  mass  of  mon. 
Wo  had  yellow  kids,  Tcxiis  .lacks,  Mouds  in  bloomers, 
Pf'icntific  minors  from  the  Mast,  couljoys,  slums,  nowspapor 
corrospondoiils,  some  Montana  and  California  minors  in 
fai:l.  Tlio  batrfrjige  was  as  inooni,n-uons  as  tlio  human 
car^^o.  1']vory  onu  had  a  canvas  ]n\y;,  (jvoryhody  had  a  ;;un 
and  knifo  and  pipes  with  tobacco,  tablets  or  diaries,  card<, 
a  very  few  books,  and  fewer  picks  and  shovels.  One  hun- 
dred and  sixty  [)asson<^ers  wore  carried  on  this  boat  with 
])asscnger  acconunodations  for  twenty  people.  A  reserva- 
tion on  the  second  dock  was  held  for  the  balance — 110 
souls:  a  space  of  HS  by  'I  \  foot  and  a  height  of  7  foot. 
This  rookery  served  as  bods,  closets,  smoking-rooms,  and 
gandjling-doMs.  The  nastiness  fi'om  the  coml)ino  and  the 
crowd  is  beyond  any  one's  belief.  Seattle  harbor  regu- 
lations ought  to  be  ashamed  of  its  ollice  to  have  allowed 
imposition  upon  a  fool  lot  of  humanity  as  we  wore  like 
the  loading  of  this  boat.  But  of  course  this  trade,  this 
mass  of  men  was  spi-ung  upon  tlio  company  so  suddenly  it 
had  no  time  to  projtaro!  Yes,  maybe  we  only  are  to 
blame,  and  we  will  never  do  it  again,  I  am  sure.  You 
know  what  fools  we  mortals  are  and  also  how  the  glitter 
of  gold  brings  the  fool  out  on  us. 

It  may  have  been  the  conditions  we  were  placed  in 
were  causes  for  the  drinking,  gambling,  and  carousing 
which  Avas  in  keeping  with  the  don  of  iniquity  in  its  tem- 
])oral  sense — the  rookery  in  which  wo  wore  oiu;ompas-;o(l. 

One's  experience  should  always  have  had  his  philoso])hy 
as  its  pioneer,  but  his  philosophy  gained  during  the  lux- 
nrious  college  season  seems  to  desert  him  during  his  bull's 
and  rebuffs  from  the  fighting  world.  On  this  tri])  wo  do 
not  want  ex])orionce,  but  clinir  hard  to  our  ))hih)sophy. 
Many  comic  things  amuse  us  in  tiio  face  of  gambling,  riot- 
ing, and  languishing.     Xono  of  r.s  are  })oor  devils  driven 


if 


)  r  t  s 


88 


t/za;  decline  and  fall  of 


in  Alnska  lliroiif,'h  poverty  or  to  escape  justice.  On  the 
other  liiiiid,  we  are  iiioslly  business  nioii  and  ^fcnlieincn 
of  leisure  nccdinfj  trade  and  clian^^e  of  scene  Of  coui'sc 
we  all  discuss  the  possibility  of  iiarvcstin;,'  a  little  gold 
^vlHlc  out. 

'i'lio  all-water  route  is  a  matter  of  I,'()0  miles  from 
Seattle  to  Dutch  JFarbor,  in  the  Aleutian  Islands,  a  eoal- 
in^  station,  an<l  from  there  '^00  miles  cast  of  north  to 
St.  Michaels,  on  tlu;  coast  of  Jiehrin;:^  Sea  and  near  the 
mouth  of  the  Yukon  River — in  all  a  run  of  thirteen  days 
for  our  ship.     The  captain  of  th(^  ship  was  supposed  to 


)0  a  most  excellent  fellow,  but  lest  some  doubt  mis.'" 


ht  fol- 


low, a  resolution  vouchiui,'  for  all  the  good  ([ualilications  of 
fi  sea  captain  was  signed  by  one  and  all,  thus  setting  at 
rest  forever  any  doubt  or  dispute  of  the  matter.  1  men- 
tion this  only  because  I  would  otherwise  be  distrusting 
myself  and  relate  a  lot  of  little  things  which  I  thought 
the  captain  did  not  do  to  make  lis  happy  on  the  trip. 

St.  Michaels,  Augufjt  31,  1897. 
All  the  Yukon  transportation  companies  transfer  their 
ocean  cargoes  to  the  river  boats  at  tliis  ])oint.  Further 
south,  80  miles,  is  the  mouth  of  the  Yukon  River,  and 
1,800  miles  nearly  east  is  the  Klondike — about  a  trip  of 
two  weeks.  On  a  nice  summer  day  this  nook  from  Rehring 
Sea  called  iVorton  Sound  appears  a  very  res])eetablc  har- 
l>or.  Arriving  liere,  more  startling  news  than  the  nuggets 
of  the  Klondike  M'as  that  people  were  starving  in  Dawson. 
We  held  meetings — always  miners'  meetings,  of  course — 
and  discussed  the  grub  question.  The  transportation  com- 
panies would  not  carry  us  any  freight  and  advised  that 
we  go  home.  However,  our  eyes  were  on  that  star  of  the 
East,  the  Klondike.  We  lay  bucking,  kicking,  and  swear- 
ing for  thirteen  days  at  Fort  Get  There,  St.  Michaels, 


I 


; 


SAMUEL  SAWBONES.  M.  D. 


89 


?hrlng 


Uvson. 

Iirse — 

com- 

that 

|>f  the 

kvear- 

liaels, 


Norton  Sound,  Bchriiif,'  Si-a,  Alaska,  waitinf:^  for  our 
transportalion  uoinpaiiy  to  pack  us  rrom  tlu-  ocean  to  river 
boat  and  liiu  us  on  our  way.  Wo  amused  ourselves — ucll, 
no,  not  niucli.  We  tratle  a  littK'  with  the  I'lskinios, 
hut  tliey  and  their  wares  stunk  so  hadly  we  I'eared  (piaraii- 
tino  at  Dawson.  However,  we  hou<,dit  some  things  to  kill 
the  worse  smells  of  the  rookery  of  oi:r  steamer,  in  the 
midst  of  my  perj)lexities  the  agei.^  !:'.fe  had  in  the  com- 
pany store  with  him  a  sort  of  eoyote  fellow,  who  says  he 
was  once  a  trooper  down  in  Montana,  as  clerk.  We  hegan 
to  got  hungry  already,  even  before  the  cold  struck  us,  and 
I  asked: 

"Mr.  Coyote,  can  you  give  me  some  crackers?" 

"No !" 

Later,  being  very  hungry,  I  said: 

"Mr.  Coyote,  please  have  you  any  cheese?" 

"No!  do!    Get  out!" 

Such  fine  little  attentions  from  storekeepers  go  a  great 
way  to  nuike  one's  time  pass  pleasantly,  and  I  would  sug- 
gest to  the  N.  A.  T.  Company  to  shij)  a  cargo  and  scatter 
them  along  their  trading  posts.  They  could  bo  had  in 
Chicago,  and  no  doubt  a  choice  olfeied  during  a  dull 
packing  season. 

When  you  get  to  Fort  Get  There  naturally  you  will 
look  about  for  the  fort.  Well,  it  is  not  here  yet.  There 
is  a  Catholic  mission  established  here  and  an  Indian 
camp  of  Eskimo  Indians.  Then  there  are  actually  a 
dozen  cannon  in  St.  ^lichaels,  about  as  big  as  those  our 
boys  play  with  on  the  Fourth,  mounted  on  wooden  wheels 
and  pointing  out  into  the  harbor.  Of  course  they  won't 
shoot. 

About  800  people  are  at  this  date  (August  31)  tloating 
about  in  this  bay,  and  the  season  is  getting  so  late  that 
doubt  exists  as  to  the  possibility  of  the  trip.    Nights  are 


.■^ 


40 


TIIK  LKCLINE  AND  FALL  OF 


jilivady  p^oltirif^  cold.  Ami  nro  wo  not  nssos  for  oontinuiiif!: 
on  against  the  tide  thai  Ix'gins?  Wo  already  rcalizo  (lie 
fact  tliat  wc  uro  ussos,  but  until  the  novelty  of  boin^  such 
wears  olf  we  will  not  confess  to  it. 

iViigust  r.'T  finds  us  transferred  to  iho  river  boat  and 
headed  up  the  ^'ukon.  'i'he  waters  are  muddy,  Iho  shores 
uro  wide-spreading  levels  with  low  brush,  and  the  eharae- 
terislie  bog,  icy  bottom.  Wood-yards  and  little  Indian 
villages  aro  all  that  lino  the  shori's.  Tiio  transportation 
com])any  trades  for  tlio  wood.  Hour,  calico,  clothes,  trink- 
ets, etc.,  and  wo  passengers  buy  fur  goods  and  novelties. 
Tricky  fellows  have  learned  to  trade  triidcets,  tobacco, 
and  edibles,  whereby  they  can  cheat  poor  Lo ;  otiiers  ac- 
tually steal  from  him,  and  snme  ft)()l  him  in  estimating 
values  of  coins.  I  am  ashame(l  to  liave  to  tell  this,  but 
I  have  been  ashamed  of  my  company  over  since  having 
left  homo.  In  good  old  Montami  days  wo  would  hero 
have  plenty  of  food  for  the  vigilantes.  I  am  almost  re- 
solved that  the  lovo  of  gold  has  so  enervated  humanity 
that  not  enough  heroism  is  left  in  it  out  of  which  to 
form  a  brave,  true  vigilante.  Playing  cards,  betting,  and 
laying  of  hands  upon  his  neighbor's  goods  seems  to  bo  the 
chief  end  of  man — such  men  wo  aro  hero — hurrying  to  the 
Klondike. 

The  natives  of  the  Yukon  have  luxurious  living  this 
Fcasoii  of  the  year.  They  have  fresh  and  dried  fish,  wild 
game.  Hour,  sugar,  and  all  luxuries  to  bo  traded  for  on 
the  boats;  and  wo  find  theju  dressed  in  all  manner  of  ma- 
terials and  with  such  fancies  entirely  as  would  not  be 
found  among  the  civilized.  T  never  saw  thom  at  meals, 
but  often  found  one  or  several  sitting  eating  dried  fish 
with  apparent  relish. 


continuinp; 

buiiig  such 

T  l)Oiit   and 
■,  \\\o  shoroa 

the  chanK'- 
iltlo  liuliaii 
msportiition 
Dthos,  trink- 
ul  novelties. 
cts,  tobacco, 
i;  others  ac- 
1  cstiniiiting 
ell  this,  l)ut 
?iiico  having 

would  here 
n  almost  rc- 
■d  humanity 
of  which  to 
betting,  and 
nis  to  be  the 
l-rying  to  the 

living  this 
n1  fish,  wild 
ided  for  on 
mer  of  ma- 
luld  not  bo 
111  at  meals, 
dried  fish 


c 

O 

z 


< 

c 
c 

> 


'V     % 


:'\,r' 


L 


1.  'r%\ 


,V      V 


';, 


'  f 


>L  .  'v. 


• 


I 

't. 


f  i 


'^>' 


tl 


SAMUEL  SA  WDOyi'JS,  Af.  D. 


41 


THE  LOWER  YUKON  COUNTRY. 


Si:vi;\  (|;iys  out  oil  the  Viiknii.  'I'liis  river  uv('rn;;os 
nojirly  n  mil(>  in  width  iis  f;ir  ii|)  as  the  prosiMit  limit  ;  it 
is  from  I'mir  lo  six  miles  mi  hour  in  nipiditv.  I.iilolv 
wo  an?  surrounded  hy  hills  ni)proiieliinf»  the  di;;iiity  almost 
of  mnuntiiiiis.  These  hills  are  covered  in  part  by  a  ^M'ass, 
yet  ehielly  hy  the  moss  peculiar  to  Alaska.  Much  of  the 
hills  and  the  mountains  have  a  low  hrush,  and  from  that 
various  sizes  of  hrush  up  to  that  of  a  small  tree  in  i^reat- 
iiess.  A  sjieeial  |)icturesriue  llr  covers  areas  of  the  hill- 
sides and  shades  them  dark  ^rciii.  ^rhe  moss  is  of  many 
colors,  much  inclined  to  red;  the  hrush  are  ^reen,  red, 
and  peculiarly  yellow,  not  spiH'iallv  an  autumn  yellow, 
hut  11  horn  tint  ol'  yellow.  There  i.-  a  l)Ki;diii;^'  on  the 
Khore  of  tin;  Yukon  ol'  all  these  colors — a  transposition 
of  them  ])iirely  as  nature  can  bestow,  which  makes  our 
present  view  a  wonderland.  Two,  four,  six  hundrd  miles 
thus  far  and  no  apparent  finale  is  presenting  us  a  picnic 
not  dreamed  of  even  hy  the  most  enthusiastic  delineator 
of  the  most  liberal  of  the  romantic  excursion  routes  of  the 
travelin;jf  public.  It  was  indecil  a  wonderfully  beautiful, 
enchant in<j^  surrouiulinir,  a  bewitchiii.i;  dreani.  We  pusli 
alonj^  this  lower  river  day  and  niuiit.  The  nioDii  is  up 
about  a  foot  above  the  hori/.on,  where  it  ap[)cars  sta- 
tionary the  past  four  hours.  The  moon  seems  to  have 
become  loony  U])  here  in  Alaska.  It  has  deserted  its  color 
— its  bri<.dit,  honest  silver  fiwe.  i^iven  u]i  its  ariryle  smile, 
and  shines  with  a  bloated,  I;il:oiis  ;-a!I()V,nes:^.  an  abscduto 
golden  radiance.     The  heretic  I     Everything  inclines  to 


J 


\ 

t  ( 


y 


42 


THE  DECLINE  AND  FALL  OF 


yollow.  I  can  state,  however,  that  wo  are  getting  sick  of 
the  iiioiionictallic  currency  as  it  strikes  us  here — trading 
with  dust. 

At  this  present  stage  we  are  in  a  furore.  We  meet  the 
company's  previous  up-river  boat ;  it  is  coming  back. 
Low  water  has  frightened  it,  and  with  its  choice  cargo — 
passengers  and  whisky — it  is  on  the  back  track,  giving  us 
warning  not  to  liope  for  the  Klondike  tliis  season.  We 
rage,  but  we  do  not  despair.  The  oldest  inhabitant  does 
not  recollect  of  low  water  before  this  season. 

A  little  further  on  and  DUO  miles  from  the  coast  is 
^linook  City.  Wo  ai)proacli  this  and  are  ofl'ered  oppor- 
tunity to  wi  -tor  here.  A  litllo  mushroom  of  tents.  We 
are  permitted  grub  at  Klondike  prices  and  guaranteed  by 
the  city  })lalters  excellent  mines  on  all  sides.  It  is  sur- 
prising to  see  how  many  and  with  what  resignation  they 
step  olT  here  for  the  next  eight  months'  incarceration. 
Xo,  thank  you,  captain.  I  will  go  on,  and  when  your  old 
scow  sticks  in  the  mud  I  will  paddle  my  own  canoe  on  and 
up.  I  however,  bought  a  town  lot  in  ]\Iinook.  There  are 
some  known  mines  in  the  vicinity,  several  of  which  pay 
very  well.  There  are  prospects  for  more,  and  when  all 
the  horde  unloading  spread  pros])ecting  we  may  have  the 
jileasure  of  recording  a  new  Klondike. 

Three  hundred  and  eighty  miles  further  in  is  Fort 
Yukon.  TIas.  is  the  region  of  low  water.  Our  boat 
promises  to  go  on  to  that  Indian  camp  of  a  dozen  log 
huts  and  a  missionary.  Nothing  now  to  chronicle  while 
on  this  stretch  save  little  incidents.  We  are  eating  our 
meals  with  fingers  in  lieu  of  knives,  forks,  and  spoons. 
Our  fellow-passengers  who  deserted  us  at  Minook  kept — 
no  doubt  meant  as  souvenirs — all  the  tableware  of  the 
boats,  leaving  us  tin  cups,  tin  plates,  and  fingers  for 
feasting  ourselves  from.    They  make  no  apologies  and  we 


pi 

m 


it  i 


^*v 


HAMUEL  ISA  WBONES,  M.  D. 


43 


of 


the 
for 
we 


I 


make  no  excuses  for  them,  save  that  tliey  learned  the 
necessity  for  seU'-preservation  while  journeying'  the  past 
four  weeks.  There  is  no  picking  for  us,  therefore  will 
not  go  and  do  likewise. 

8loj)pin,:^'  t(j  wood  tlie  boat  to-day,  I  beheld  a  scene  pe- 
culiar to  this  stream.  A  queen  of  these  shores,  an  Indian 
woman  gorgeously  decorated  with  furs,  came  up  the  sliorc 
with  a  dasii,  she  at  the  helm — not  of  state,  but  of  her 
bark  canoe  and  a  team  of  dogs  at  the  line,  making  a  dis- 
play as  well  as  rapid  transit.  The  said  subject  received 
the  munificent  revenue  of  %o2  for  eight  cords  of  wood  and 
began  immediately  to  turn  her  coins  of  silver  and  gold 
into  luxuries:  a  gorgeous  bandanna  handkerchief,  a  bag 
of  crackers,  yards  of  gny-colored  prints,  and — will  you 
believe  it  ? — a  lot  of  soap ! 

Here  we  are  higli  and  dry  sure,  though  the  river  looks 
big  enough  for  a  gunboat  to  pass  up.  A  dozen  cabins  all 
told  is  tlie  real  estate  of  Fort  Yukon,  owned  by  Indians,  a 
missionary,  and  the  transportation  companies.  The  In- 
dians are  olf  fishing  for  the  winter's  grub,  leaving  house 
and  homo  vacant;  but  to-day  not  a  cabin  is  h)nely.  We 
have  srpiatted  into  and  u])on  everything  like  shelter.  The 
Indians  may  come  home  any  day  and  scalp  us,  as  we  de- 
serve, but  we  are  taking  all  sorts  of  chances  in  every- 
thing. ]\Iany  passengers  deserted  their  craft  on  the  way 
up  the  river  and  many  more  propose  returning  from  this 
point.  Two  dozen  stop  here,  while  the  boat  sails  away 
down  to  the  sea;  stop  here  to  be  "Mearer,  my  (jod,  to  thee*' 
— to  the  gold  of  the  Klondike.  We  discuss  the  })ossibili- 
ties,  which  are  these:  poling  up  the  river  in  canoes;  wait- 
ing for  ice  and  going  up  with  sleds;  but  we  have  no  d(^gs. 
Dawson  is  -1  J  miles  up,  and  twenty  days  with  dogs  will 
land  us. 

We  are  here  now  a  week  wailing  for  something  to  turn 


ft 


in 


44 


THE  DECLINE  AND  FALL  OF 


np — pomc  heroic  captain  willing  to  force  a  channel  through 


the  Yukon  tlat.s.     The  Indi 


hou 


id  th 


3  arc  coini  _ 

have  gripj)(\  true  hluc  white  folks'  grippe,  and  one  is  dead 
of  it.  Oh,  their  hideous  crying  dogs  and  hahicsl  Doll  on 
Alaska  remarks:  "The  Eskimo,  or  rather  the  Yukon 
Indian  hahies  do  not  cry."  Doll  evidently  is  a  great  liar, 
for  these  hrats  squeal  and  hellow  ecpial  to  any  little  Cau- 
casian I  ever  was  entertained  by. 

I  had  the  pleasure  to-day  of  meeting  ^Ir.  "Whipple,  dis- 
coverer of  claim  Xo.  ],  Eldorado  CJuleh,  Klondike.  Mr. 
Whipple  was  paddling  his  canoe  down  the  river,  with 
Minook  City  his  objective.  He  bought  200  pounds  of 
flour  here  to  mend  leaks  in  his  winter  stores.  Likewise 
he  wished  50  pounds  of  sugar,  but  he  had  no  sack,  and 
the  trading  store  never  furnish  anything  but  the  raw 
goods.  If  ]\rr.  Whipple  were  mining  down  in  i\Iontana 
he  would  reach  down  and  take  gunny  sacks  from  off  his 
feet  and  fill  in  his  sui:rar,  but  here  the  miner  learns  to  ac- 
commodate  himself  not  only  to  the  Indian  srpuiw,  but  to 
Indian  dress,  therefore  nothing  but  moccasins  are  on  his 
feet.  ]\Ir.  Whipple  finally  tied  up  the  bottom  of  his  over- 
alls and  got  away  with  his  sugar.  This  simply  illustrates 
the  accommodations  met  with  in  these  Yukon  trading 
companies.  This  man  Whipple,  as  before  stated,  staked 
claim  No.  1  at  Eldorado,  one  of  the  best  on  the  Klon- 
dike, and  when  only  partly  prospected  sold  out.  lie 
took  his  few  thousands,  went  into  Dawson  City,  hired 
all  the  dogs  and  sleds  to  be  found  and  held  a  grand 
carnival  up  and  down  ^lain  Street,  and  waked  fi'om  his 
dreams  a  few  days  later  broke.  After  realizing  that  a 
magnificent  fortune  had  been  his,  but  was  his  no  more,  ho 
turned  tail  to  the  Klondike  and  hopes  to  mend  his  means 
at  Minook  City. 


I 


i. 


m 


SAMUEL  SA  WBONES,   M.  D. 

^yeJwUl  the  fuH,  the  old  Fort  Yukon  f 
-^0.     J  sec  tlic  uld  furl  holds  us! 

n^'crive  shall  die  in  Fort  Yukon 
^f  we  hold  the  fort  or  it  holds  US' 


45 


I 


V 


i 


46 


THE  DECLINE  AND  FALL  OF 


ON  TO  DAWSON. 

Air,  wo  (lid  do  a  lot  of  fretting,  fuming,  crying  before 
liurt  uselessly,  for  here  we  are  actually  on  our  way  again 
to  Dawson.  Tlie  Bella,  the  beautiful  Bella,  beautiful  not 
because  of  gaudy  colors  and  elegant  lines,  for  she  is  any 
old  tub  of  a  boat,  l)ut  because  she  acts  the  good  Samaritan 
and  ])icks  us  up  from  'he  wayside,  and  because  Captain 
Dickson  took  us  stranded  idiots  bv  the  liand  and  liiive 
us  a  boost  on  our  quixotic  adventures.  Never  a  day  be- 
fore loomed  up  so  brightly,  so  ha])])y,  so  auspicious.  A 
hundred-])ound  package  Avas  as  light  as  our  best  loaf  of 
bread;  the  gangplaidv  was  as  wide  as  the  path  to  Castle 
Luxury ;  the  snow  hx  the  streets  of  Yukon  was  warm 
even.  We  bid  good-by  to  the  remaining  good  souls  with 
feigned  tears  aiid  are  again  on  the  dangerous  shoals  of 
the  Yukon  h'iver.  We  take  the  liobber,  that  branch  which 
has  last  robbed  the  main  stream  of  its  feed,  and  we  are 
treated  royally  by  the  most  gracious  thief.  Nothing  was 
left  wanting  in  iis  kindness,  and  we  are  singing  praises 
even  to  the  robber.  Of  course  we  will  get  there.  Xow  we 
eat,  driidv,  and  l)e  merry,  for  there  is  no  end  to  the 
good  things  aboard  the  V>o\\^. 

This  being  the  other  steamship  company,  we  liad  signed 
certain  stipulntions  for  the  favor,  such  as  exonerating  the 
company  from  tlie  usual  dangers  of  the  sea,  starvation, 
freezing,  or  capture  by  pirates.  And  most  important  was 
to  help  wood  the  boat.  At  dusk  the  boat  tied  up  on  the 
bank  of  the  river,  and  we  pilgrims  bound  to  the  unholy 
land  of  gold  had  a  little  task  of  gathering  in  about  fifteen 


SAMUEL  SA  WBONES,  M.  D. 


47 

an     any  stick  wo  cov„a  turn  to  roll        on    •  r'^v 

had  b,g    nn,ps  stuck  about  in  the  bush  an.I  we  ,   od  no 
to  r,T  /.f""""  °"  ''-''  ""*•     Tl'oro  was  on  ul    ,", 
U  the  S,>"  ""■■'  "T""^''  >-°"  '^'  ^•«"  '-'1  o     V 


I 


H 


48 


TUB  DECLINE  AND  FALL  OF 


CIRCLE  CITY. 

Two  short  days  In  rapid  walors  piloting  in  and  ab  -ul 
bars,  with  gathering  dl"  wood  along  tho  bhorcs  fur  the 
boat,  and  wc  were  landed  at  Circle  City,  80  miles  up  the 
river  from  Fort  Yukon,  'I'lie  gangplaniv  was  down,  wliere- 
iipon  a  deh'gation  ol'  "proniineut  citizens"  boarded  lis. 
iu'low  in   the   hoiier-rooni,  among  Eskimo  dogs  and   Si- 


wash  Indians,  Uiev  lined  over  and 


upon  our  luggage 


and 


traps  and  read  od'  their  resolutions,  and  politely  recjuested 
our  concurrence  in  said  memorJals.  \n  jdaiii,  "What  are 
you  going  to  do  about  it?"  Captain  Ray,  of  the  United 
States  army,  mounted  a  box  of  evaporated  potatoes  and 
made  a  nice  little  speech,  in  which  he  tried  to  make  them 
believe  they  were  good  American  citizens  and  that  they 
certainly  could  not  mean  to  disturb  the  ]ieace  and  break 
the  municipal  laws  of  the  growing  metropolis,  Circle  Cit}^ 
as  also  the  law  and  Constitution  of  the  great  and  glorious 
United  States.  That  now,  after  having  acted  their  play 
60  admirably,  they  must  go  home  and  not  rol)  the  boat — 
take  the  bread  and  cheese  out  of  the  mouths  of  their  neigh- 
bors, the  good  people  on  the  Klondike  who  were  hungry, 
whose  mouths  have  been  watering  a  whole  season  for  the 
good  things  of  this  good  boat's  stores,  who  stretch  out 
empty  hands  for  the  same  and  return  nuggets  in  thanks- 
giving. 

A  very  nice,  very  eloquent,  very  proper  speech  he  made, 
appealing  to  justice,  humanity,  and  loyally.  Tie,  how- 
ever, made  a  serious  mistake  in  appealing  to  patriotism, 
for  the  chief  speaker  of  the  committee  bounced  the  most 


sA.}fn:L  .'''AwnoM-:s,  m.  D. 


4!) 


igh- 

|t!ie 
lout 

ilcs- 

ido, 

)St 


pn  jnir''iif  ni'c  cf  \v'  nffc^  v.'iiifli  ]i;ij)poiir(l  to  bo  a  kc<^  of 
!),'••;•.  >!1  I'd  y\Vi(>|  iiw  !<],,.;  ,.]'  i ';!])tili!l  lliix's  owii  iiiiporlalio!!, 
iiT!  I  iii;i(l(>  the  roliowin.L:  !i'i(  I:  t;ilk: 

"We.  the  ;i!-'?ooiation  now  pro.-cniiii',',  nrc  tlio  pi^oplo,  tlio 
miners,  the  hniic  iinil  siiU'W  i>t'  ALi-ka.  W'r  arc  lumu'i'v; 
we  ai-o  tliirslv.  For  \V(^''ks  wo  aro  (Hit  of  hnltcr  and  t','T,'-,'s, 
nor  Iiiive  wo  Instrd  o^  llic  \'i:  nn;)  sau.-a,:j:('  or  Iiocliofort 
chocsc  npon  which  1  traniplo  ihd,^  pre.-oni  nionimt,  Tlio 
ycAv  |ii:.-t  wo  havo  h;id  n("»  milk  for  our  lea  and  oolTro  nor 
for  our  mothorlcsi^  kids— iio(hin<;  fnr  llu^n  .-'.wo  dried  fish 
and  Iho  nalivo  l(('Iaii(]  lIlo^;s.  \V(>  ar<'  taxed  $1"^^  for  onr 
flour,  which  is  dama.i^ed  hcvond  the  reli.-h  of  the  Siwasli 
Efpiaw.  Our  mines  ;:litter  with  .u''ld,  hut  our  stoniaclis 
pale  and  shrivel  from  huniTer  and  wo  lack  slron,Li;th  to 
pan  out  this.  Tho?o  with  fond  must  rarrv  it  '0  miles  to 
Iho  mines  on  do:r  sleds.  The  seasoTi  is  hero.  Duty  to 
themselves,  their  families,  and  to  jinsi^i-ity  confront  llii'm. 
TluMr  diirsxin^rs,  iiicii-  liomos,  their  lu'ollhs  stare  at  them 
as  grim  spccicTS.  "^'o'.i  must  not  ror;:jc  t,  my  dear  oaptain. 
my  brilliant  soldier,  (h.at  ^vo  are  Amci'ican  citizens,  true 
blue,  broatliinp:  under  the  Hjars  a.id  Stripes  and  hoping 
to  bleach  our  hones  luider  the  same.  Here  wo  see  you 
aid  and  abet  this  boat,  this  commercial  comixany,  in  its 
aiiempt  to  pass  by  your  vrards,  your  citizens.  You  allow 
Ks  to  starve,  desert  us,  in  these  far-otf  cold  shores,  these 
..:",;:ntnin  wilds,  allow  them  to  blockade,  chill,  freeze 
:;:•  i(>.;;l  blood,  and  for  u-hat  ?  To  enrry  bread  and  hut- 
'er  iido  foreign  ports,  int.)  alien  camps,  to  feed  and  re- 
lievo British  possessions,  to  throw  our  lives  and  safely 
away  for  men  sheltered  l)y  the  Hag  of  Great  Britain.  Is 
that  the  mission  of  you.  repT'o-enling  the  Amcricrn  States, 
an  ofTicer  of  its  grand  army?" 

Even  Captain  Kay  acknowledged  the  justice  and  tlio 
patriotism   of   the   miners'    meeting   and   meekly   slipped 


II 


*1 


i 


I  I 


i  f 


50 


TUE  DECLINE  AND  FALL  OF 


' 


out  and  ofT.  Tho  conimittco,  wiihont  foroo  or  ceremony, 
oponod  tho  hatoh  of  the  ve?sel  and  relieved  us  of  thirty 
ton,-^  of  the  hest  things  in  the  ship's  liohl.  This  included 
ill  111  r,  l)!K'on,  heans,  boneless  turkey,  butter,  buckwheat, 
ciinncd  luxuries,  cheeses,  etc. 

On  to  Dawson  Septendjer  30. 

Tiic  river  lessens,  the  distance  lessens,  the  time  lessens, 
and  now  we  feel  safe  to  say  we  will  <,'et  there,  even  though 
tho  ice  runs  freely  and  the  thermometer  says  five  (I(>grees 
this  morning.  I  keep  cheering  tlie  captain  hy  j)()inting 
out  to  him  that  the  wild  geese  still  hold  the  country. 
Therefore  wo  must  have  some  nice  wann  weather  still 
later. 

The  only  settlement  on  the  Yukon  to  pass  is  Forty 
Mile.  Tt  is  a  Canadian  post,  hut  mostly  settled  hy  Amer- 
icans, while  much  of  the  diggings  about  the  head  of 
Forty  l\rile  are  on  tributaries  from  the  American  side  of 
the  line.  It  is,  however,  insignificant  to  us,  and  we  barely 
touch  there  to  get  our  exchange  of  mail.  Sixty  miles 
more  and  wo  are  there. 

All  hail  to  that  smoky  nook  around  tho  comer  ahead! 
Yes,  'tis  tho  mouth  of  the  Klondike  and  the  city.  City? 
Well,  'tis  Dawson.  And  we  rustle  and  bustle  for  the 
landing?  Oh,  no.  We  have  little  or  nothing  to  land 
save  ourselves,  and  landing  is  like  the  landing  of  a  herd 
.1"  cattle — we  must  almost  be  driven  olF,  for  we  know 
■:v)t  where  we  go. 


\ 


SAMUEL  SA  WnoyES,  M.  1). 


51 


DAWSON  ON  THE  KLONDIKE. 


II  iiiQ 

ntry. 


OcToni'R  1,  180T.  Two  days  a^'o  llicTf  cliinbod  llic 
mighty  Yukou  and  hove  to  at  the  wharf  in  Dawson  City 
a  steamboat  of  several  huiKhvd  tons  burden.  Upon  the 
first  discovery  of  its  smoke  floating  high  over  the  banks 
away  down  the  stream  the  popuhiee  of  tlic  town  and  of  the 
Klondike  on  the  other  side  of  the  river  floated,  then  swept 
out  to  the  lauding.  The  band  came,  too,  and  played 
"The  girl  I  left  behind  me,"  with  other  lively  airs,  and 
while  it  played  it  looked  to  see  if  by  chance  the  girl  might 
have  come  with  other  luxuries.  The  mounted  police  on 
foot  also  came,  slowly,  as  is  their  wont,  but  not  to  keep 
order  in  the  throng,  for  it  was  too  enthusiastic,  too  wild 
for  restraint. 

Cheers,  hurrahs,  and  the  chimes  of  a  thousand  Eskimo 
dogs  made  the  scene  hideous.  Fur  caps  were  tossed  and 
parkees  waved  in  lieu  of  handkerchiefs,  and  there  was  in 
fact  a  hot  time.  To-day  another  boat,  just  as  big,  just 
as  pretentious,  just  as  important  in  every  particular,  and 
with  just  as  valuable  a  cargo,  inasmuch  as  your  very 
humble  servant  was  part  and  parcel  thereof,  puffed  its 
smoke  high  over  the  cliffs  and  paddled  its  way  np  llu^ 
rapids  and  hove  to  at  the  same  wharf  without  nl trading 
the  least  attention — without  the  blowing  of  whistles  or 
even  a  tender  of  the  freedom  of  the  city.  We  wished  to 
dispel  the  gloom  of  the  ])('0])le  by  a  little  cheerfulness  of 
our  own,  and  struck  np  "There'll  be  a  hot  time  in  the  old 
town  to-night.''  But  there  was  not ;  in  fact,  there  was 
an  icy  cold  time.     No  one  was  looking  for  us,  no  latch- 


( 


<  ■ 


ii 


, 


I 


I! 


53 


77//;  DEC  LINK  A^D  FALL  OF 


siring  to  a  wjinii  liciirlli  liim;:;  out,  .iiid  uc  cumpcd   in  ii 
/(•rt»  lio.^piliilily. 

'I'lio  s[)<nitinic(;u.s  outluii^t  of  the  Klni'.dikrr.s  over  llic 
III',  t  I).  Ill  was  not  of  an  overloaded  ^jomach.  On  tl'.c  oth'T 
Irind,  il   Uiis  i)  Iiiin;,'ry  appial,  ra;j:cr:!('s.',  li^pc  for  lu'ciid, 


iin( 


1    il 


s    small    Iniiiia'rc    \'.as   a    di.-aiiiioiiitiar 


a     ;   I  »( 


Oidy  lli(!  rciiiiiaiils  after  a  Iiold-iip  l»y  I'le  ininci's  al 
Circlo  I'ily  Wiis  lift  (d'  tli''  load.  It  was  in  ilu'  ciiMlrric 
minds  :.f  t!i(>  ])opidaee  that  we,  too,  were  c'lnin;:  ii.u'ht- 
lauided  and  heavy-footed,  v.hiili  was  the  i-aso,  for  tlie 
'"miners'  committee"  al   (iulc  had  lioanlfd  n>  ae.d   harrd 


few  nallrv  t( 


d  stiill's  and  no  liiiui 


lis  down  to  a  lew  paltry  ions  ot  soinl  slims  and  no  iKiuids. 

Of  11)1'  ICO  passer;;irrs  leaviiiLi;  Sealtlo  on  AiiLrnst  Ti,  as 
yet  hnl  I'.i  ir  of  ns  have  rcaelietl  llu^  K'londike.  The  ^'l■llow 
i^'id,  '['("..IS  .laei<.  ihc  ,';ii'l  in  hloonii  I's.  llie  si'ieiilist  from 
!')Os(on,  the  eapitali.-t  fi'om  New  York,  tlie  ifentleman  of 
('hira;,'o,  all  loud  in  tlieii'  dariei,'  and  doin-jf,  liave  stranded, 
a:;d  we  few,  only  hy  dint  of  ])er.-'(>veraneo,  clicek,  ])iish, 
ae.d  miirlit,  have  v/on  the  rae(\  (>f  SO')  jH'oiiJe  willi  us  in 
SI,  Miihat'ls  harhor  only  this  load  of  TiO  are  here  or  will 
p'l  here  this  season.  The  iee  bo_<]^ins  to  run,  and  this  boat 
must  unload  to-ni^dit  and  he  otV  in  tlie  morning,  or  olso 
it  will  he  harhored  here  for  tlio  wiTd(T. 

l'assen!;-ers'  outfits  arc  heinjj;  stored  in  tlio  tra(]in,j:^  roni- 
])nnies"  warehouses  to  he  insj)eeie<l  hy  the  govei'iiment  of- 
lieer.  Hverythinij^,  from  association,  from  valuaMe  ser- 
vice remhu'ed  it.  has  heeome  very  pi'c^eious,  and  v/e  !'■  ai-  Im 
-rust  it  out  of  s!,'rht.  We  k<M'p  waleli  f-)r  loiiLf  hou:'.' — \\\\ 
■■ 'I'eh  the  ether  fe'low,  avIio  is  watehin*.,^  Ids  ston^  a'd  w- 
Inrniii'.':  our  compliment  hy  wafehinix  ns.  It  is  cold — 
':);'h)w  z(M'o.  Wo  dance  to  k(>ep  v.arm,  walk  to  ens(^  u?  ;: 
jo'.d.  and  wlnsll(>  to  keep  up  coura'^^e.  Fjien  the  fop  "f 
onr  parcels  trees  tiu^  slup's  cnvio,  n!id  vo  -.wr  :nvi^(^d  (o 
e;;ll  hi*'M'.     Thus  we  ai'c  IniTcd  loesn  ou  the  town,  but  do 


BAMi'EL  SAWDONKS,  M.  D. 


d8 


ill 
Kit 

so 

lu- 
ll f- 
•!■- 

Im 
'  •.  > 


lo 
lo 


not  ptart  out  to  paint  it  p  d  nor  to  seek  Im'«1  and  boans 
Inr  we  aiv  atlvi-((I  iioiu'  aii'  to  In-  liad.  The  main  tXvcci 
I'cviri  as  llioiiprli  we  ini;^dit  spread  our  blatdvcls  and  ivAf 
lail  llu'M  wo  riiii:-!  sliaro  witii  tlio  llioiisand-a;;d  ouo  '".irs 
already  located,  (ireat  luck  I  We  lind  an  unliiiisluid  lo^ 
»alun  and  Ind;:.-  ihcre:  ilu'  U'w  sliavinirs  ;,Mve  our  wcTiVy 
heads  iind  chilly  hearts  the  h' '-l  resi  I'or  days  hae!;. 

OiloluT  ::.'.  The  sun  shines  h'-re  this  niornin;;  as  it 
docs  outside.  The  days  are  of  iiumIcimIc  Icn^^ths.  It  I:',  no 
colder  than  we  aic  i'aniiliar  with — niiduay  hctw  'ii  t'ne:^- 
i'l;:;  arid  zero— and  the  atmosphere  is  di'y,  lira  inir,  and 
nrrreoahle,  and  no  special  ill  threatens,  yet  I  feol  depres.-i  d, 
.'■ilcnt,  weak-kneed,  desolate.  Ah,  I  see  now.  I  iun  liuu- 
^'j\\  and  nowhere  can  F  ;^'et  my  hreakfast.  Sure  that  is  it, 
and  1  am  nil'  down  to  oiii-  old  IVJcnd  llie  hoat  that  rari'ied 
us  ovor.  There  I  blarney  the  conk,  who  permits  me  to 
take  a  cup  of  hot  water.  While  drinkin^f  it  1  tell  him  a 
thrillin.i::  scene  of  the  ni,i;ht.  and  he  dares  not  say  nay  to 
the  handful  of  sea  biscuits  and  cold  bacon  1  seize  ujmn. 
This  is  my  lir>t  breakfast  on  the  Klondike. 

'I'his  day's  house-hunting  steei'cti  me  into  the  face  of  ci 
colony  from  home  teiitinLT  on  a  irravel  imr  on  the  ^'nl\■on — 
dear  ohl  faces  bei  au.-e  fi'om  dear  old  home.  I  had  a 
miji'hty  meal  <d'  sla]»jael<s.  beans,  bamn,  ai;d  a  relish  of 
cliee.-:)'  and  (M'acki'rs.  1  was  wat'nied  up.  i-e.-|oi'ed  in  mind 
ami  body,  a!id  r.pon  tlie  stimulus  of  the  occasion  renlcd  a 
house  on  i-'irst  Avenue — a  c;il)in  !S  by  "i  I  feet,  on,"  sforv, 
Olio  room  and  kitchen,  for  i^l\'\)  pej-  nionth  in  advatice  for 
six  months,  llciv  1  .i:;'.  now  ai  iioni; — not  (piite  "■S'A-ec^t 
home,"  but  tlie  (.n!y  ■.)!<!  thin^i:  cd"  a  b.oine  1  l:av(>  !iad  ;  the; 
only  thiii,i?  I  have  had  for  sixty  day.-  that  1  should  like  to 
call  home  for  a  pet  d  •;:.  1  ca;i  a;  'e;,.!  rc.-t  ii;y  licad  and 
1,r;vrt  and  achy  old  bones  in  ])caie  and  without  chaiKc  of 
lo'-.i.!;  walked  over,  sat  upon,  sj.il  on,  sleained  through,  and 


I 


I 


i\ 


i 


*  I 


11' 


;'f 


'  'I 


6t 


77/ a;  dkcijnk  and  fall  of 


(•lulled;  without  iiaviii;,'  my  sliiii  l)<)ius  sjimplcd  daily 
by  prowlin;^  curs  or  In'iii^'  a  curhc  for  the  >iii[t|iis  live- 
stock |)ro[>.i;,Mtt'(l  \\\  Siwasli  Indians.  'I'lic  old  arm-chair 
is  not  Ikic,  iiui'  the  I'oot-stool ;  tln'  I't'atlur  hnj  and  .-prin^ 
mattress  ^'ive  not  their  halm.     'rhree-le«:;;e{l  stools,  crude 


pini 


tidjU 


ipriK 


e  pole  beds,  am 


I  the  n.-iial  unwashed  lit 


tin;,'s  of  a  pioneer  (ill  up  our  furnituri'.  liut  our  pray(>rs 
are  not  for  our  .surroun(lin.ifs.  We  feel  a  little  frij^hteru'd 
over  the  matter  of  food  for  the  winter,  aiul  our  daily  bread 
will  p 


ossihlv  ahsoi 


h  all 


our  » 


levot 


ons. 


October  .'I.     The  climate  conditions  are  serene  in  Daw- 


No  more  irl()rif)us  sun  si 


sliines 


pon  at  this  present,  writ  in;, 
than  ours  of  to-day.  livery  thin;;  is  in  keepin;;  with  an 
old-timer's  remark:  "This  is  the  fiiu'st  winter  climate  ia 
the  w<u'ld."  livery  condition  seems  to  vouch  for  hi.s  as- 
surance that  it  never  ;^rows  colder  here  than  in  Michi;,Mn, 
]\lain(>,  or  Montana  ;  that  we  learn  to  love  it  and  seek  to 
abide  in  it.  Hut  we  are  startled  so  (jflen  when  we  wisli  to 
enjoy  the  glories  and  wonders  of  tlie  Klondike  by  the 
barter. 

"Any  flour  to  trade?" 

"No." 

"Any  beans?    Any  bacon?" 

We  are  held  up,  as  it  were,  so  often  this  way  that  wo 
wisli  we  luid  Hour  and  beans  and  bacon  to  trade  or  to  give 
away.  What  do  they  want  to  trade  us  for  these  staples? 
Anything;  dust,  nuggets,  simphu*  foods,  clothes,  etc.  We 
are  oll'ered  '300  pouiuls  of  nuiose  meat  for  a  hundred-poutid 
sack  of  flour.  Wo  count  our  flour  and — oh,  no,  not  ""^ 
pound  to  spare,  and  the  trading  companies  will  not  givt 
a  bit.  Wo  find  mooso  meat  selling  for  $1  per  pound  th, 
morning,  as  was  also  fresh  fish,  ^lilord  Bacon,  our  King 
Flour,  and  Chief  Beans  arc  not  to  be  had  for  love  or 
money. 


HAAIih'L  HAWLUM-.'S.  M.  JJ. 


65 


wo 
:ivo 

ICS  ? 

\\\r 

iim! 


lor 


I 


Conti.'nijtlalion  riiakcs  (lie  sim  sliiiio  less  lively  ami  tlio 
tt'iHjii'ratiin'  .-t'cms  a  (Ic^ftc  loucr,  and  tiirtiinrirs  I'roiii 
away  over  (»ul  oT  tlir  coutitry  sti'ai  in  ;iiii  rg  tlirsc  ^a(l 
ilioii^'lils.  Howi'ViT,  (dir  >lt(|i  is  rt-rri'slii'd  hy  tlri'aiiis  of 
tlu'  ^^old  fields  on  the  Klondike  ami  llie  magniliLeiil  for- 
tiiiit's  llicn,'  auailiii^  iis. 

Miiiin«?  is  (jiiid.  First,  it  is  the  season  for  [)ri'()aration; 
a  lillhi  loo  (•ail\  to  mint'  lucausc  the  ^'roiiml  and  waleia 
are  not  i'ro/.cn  substantial;  second,  llieri'  is  a  strike  at 
the  mines  heeause  the  wages  are  being  tried  to  be  I'oreed 
down  from  .$l..'")()  per  hour  to  .$1  per  hour.  OM  prices 
were  $l.rj(j  per  iiour,  and  with  the  rise  in  grub  it  shduld 
not  be  too  much  to-day.  Hesides,  working  for  wages, 
miners  not  having  mines  of  their  own  have  a  cluuce  of 
taking  "lays"  (leases)  on  mines  in  which  they  receive  50 
per  cent,  of  the  output.  Kvery  man  to  his  mind  in  the 
matter  of  working  for  wages,  working  on  lays,  or  pros- 
pecting for  himself. 

Dawson,  the  chief  eatnp  of  tiie  Klondike  mining  dis- 
trict, is  situated  on  the  Yukon  liiver,  which  runs  a  little 
west  of  north.  The  Yukon  at  tliis  point  is  one-third  of 
a  mile  wide,  very  deep  and  rapid.  The  Klondike  River 
comes  into  the  Yukon  from  the  east,  cutting  a  cluiidc  olf 
the  camp.  Tile  deea])itated  part  is  named  Klondike  City. 
The  Klondike  Kiver  i-^  !"(>  yards  vide,  not  very  deep,  but 
lapid,  tortuous,  rocky,  and  unfit  for  navigation  except  for 
polo  boats  or  very  small  motor  boats.  Three  miles  from 
the  mouth  of  the  Klondike  Bonanza  Creek  empties  into  it 
from  the  south,  and  II  miles  up  lionanza  Creek  comes  into 
it  Eldorado  Creek,  a  little  from  the  southwest,  lionanzu 
Creek  and  Eldorado  Creek  have  pnHiucod  thus  far  all 
the  gold  of  tlie  Klondike  district.  The  Klondike  Kiver 
pa       out  Dothiug  in  either  bar  diggings  or  gulch  dig- 


i 


50 


TIIK  DECLINE  AM)  FALL  OF 


f 


'l^hrcc  hnndi'cil  houses  and  h;;::  cuImiis  niiiy  ovcrcsii;)!;!!^' 
iiri  size.  Tlicre  arc  ai  pi'csont  Don  U  nts,  !n:t  llifv  ai"-  i'a-! 
Ii;'.iilin^'  down  as  Uio  cold  and  dciiiand  for  iiiinciv  ])i(  ■:-■. 
k  is  very  funny  lo  src  I  lie  r.mtaslic  shacks  grown  froii;  tlie 
''.M<ri  and  scows  Ihal  Jh)ated  tlie  popuhition  down  here 
from  Uie  lakes.  They  are  upsiide  down,  on  end.  halved 
and  si)Iie('d,  covcrinrr  dugouts  and  interwoven  with  tents 
and  lo;c  liuls.  One  v.'oiidcrs  what  they  tan  mean  until  lie 
noses  aliout   in  them  and  iinds  lliem  inhahitcd. 

Dawson  town  sile  is  a  !ia(,  one  side,  almost  slrai,£!:lit, 
hordei'in^'  on  t!;,'  I'ivi'r,  ail  the  rest  of  it  encifled  hy  a 
liVTimlain,  the  ^i-eale.-t  de})th,  in  its  middle,  h^'in;,^  tme- 
third  of  a  mile.  W  would  he  swampy  oniy  thai  it  is 
frozen  solid  in  winier,  while  t!u>  moss  cov<M'i!!.L:^  proiects 
it  from  thawing  out  more  ilian  a  deplh  of  one  or  two  fei't 
in  summer.  The  n'.a.Her  cf  street.-,  in  Dawson  will  he  a 
serious  (Mie  if  it  atta.ins  to  a  husy  city. 

The  water  supply  i.,  the  Yukon  Kiver,  through  huekcts 
in  sunnner  and  ice  sleds  in  winiiT.  Oti  the  hillside  at 
the  north  end  of  town  nvo  some  hoautii'ul  springs,  and 
this  locati(m  is  hecoming  [)(>{iular  as  a  re,-.idtMicc  site.  The 
shore  water  of  th;^  'Vu!.:en  Ix'ing  the  Klondike,  the  supply 
is  clear,  iVesh.  ^'nd  appannitly  good  in  all  particulars. 

Lots  on  iMrst  Avenue  arc  wortli  $5,000  to  -$10,000. 
][oAveV(M-,  not  nnich  is  doing  in  real  estate  at  present, 
'TI:o  atmosphere  is  too  full  of  other  husiness,  and  one  is 
;..)i  apt  to  neglect  a  choice  claim  for  a  mere  matter  of 
house,  lot,  and  home  luxuries.  I  am  not  well  booked  as 
yet  in  alTairs  here  and  will  give  details  later.  1  have  not 
yet  been  to  the  mines.  The  food  supply  keeps  us  think- 
ing, talking,  and  quarreling.  Every  day  it  se(Mn'i  to  )f,}\)\\' 
more  dark.  To-day  T  heard  tell  of  a  man  who  had  had 
no  food  for  four  days.  No,  not  scarce  yet,  but  no  one 
will  give  or  sell  through  fear  of  shortage  in  the  winter. 


SAMUEL  SAWBONES,   M.  D. 


67 


A  ver}'  huii-rv  ),uni  dropiud  into  our  cabin  and  wc,  for- 
p^ottinc,'  ll!...  ^^it nation,  ^mvl"  iiim  a  sharo  of  our  dinner- 
bread  and  butter,  colioe,  bcan.s,  and  a  slice  of  ham.     1 T  > 
baiide<l  out  \v.<  ^a(■k.     '"TlKro:  take  out  .$5;  it  was  ;r.,.-.^b 
it.  '    Now-  and  then  wc  Mr  sanduiciios  selling  on  the  stre  ■! 
'li  '1^1.     l'>ui   (Iv.y  aiv  Jiaid  truck,     'i'he  two  trading  c^ui- 
I'aiues,  .<o  far  as  they  can  lill  oM  orders,  contiiMie  to  do  <^o 
at  oJd  }.ri(vs:   ll,,ur,  ^M".'  per  hundred  pounds;  bacon,  37 
ceuts   per  p,.und  ;   beans,   -5    cents.      All   cla>ses   of   food 
are  selling  on  the  side  f.)r  ^\  per  pound.     I  am  hearing 
the  starvation  <|U.'sti..n  from  morning  to  niglii.     Murj'iiin, 
from  New  York,  has  just  remarked:     "In  our  city  if  a 
man  has  a  big  saek  of  dust  he  can  go  at  a  brisk  gait  and 
carry   a   high    he.id,   but   here   if   he   has   several   hundred 
pounds  of  Hoar  lie  can  just  rush.     i)ust  doesn't  count  any- 
thing."   TJie  Honwrable  Joy,  mend)er  from  .Montana,  says: 
'■I  haven't  had  the  wrinkles  out  of  my  stomach  for  four 
days." 

October  J.  I  called  again  to-day  for  jny  baggage, 
Avliich  was  unloaded  aiul  stored  in  the  A.  CI.  CVmipany's 
warehouses.  "Your  trunks  are  personal  baggage.  All 
else  you  must  ])ay  transp(.)rtation  for."  1  had" iwo  trunks, 
whicli  v.-ere  h.m.ded  over.  Some  bundles,  100  pounds  of 
hour,  ard  ItM)  p, ;;;!!<!>  ef  oilier  grub  were  taxed  for  freight. 
Nothing  more  was  s;ii(l;  woilmvy  exacted  for  duty  upon 
this  outtit.  :,[y  pa.rd  and  1  resolved  ourselves  into  i)aek 
mules,  for  no  transportation  was  at  service,  and  carri-d 
homo  our  things,  'i'liere  we  sat  upon  tiiem,  wept  over 
them,  and  bewaiied  their  iiitleness. 

There  are  a  iew  teams  of  liorses  in  Dawson  freighting  for 
$10  per  hoar,  ^^hesc  will  proI)ab]y  l,e  killed  oif  for  want  of 
food,  and  for  wan.t  of  feed  Ln-  the  dogs  the  horses  nuist 
go  lo  the  faithful  plodding  winter  motor  power  of  the 
countrv. 


I 


^ 


f 


I V 


I      I 


':  i 


9 


58 


rzr^  DECLIXE  AXT    FALL  OF 


Through  my  .side  window  I  can  view  tlio  internal  ar- 
rangorncnt  of  my  neighbor  through  Ids.  Jt  is  a  Ijar  and 
seems  to  be  dealing  niueh  in  single  drinks.  A  drink  is  50 
eenls,  whieh  possibly  accounts  for  the  loneliness  of  the 
patron.  Of  course  after  this  tirst  drink  one  may  feel  the 
moon  to  shine  a  little  moi'C  cheerful.  lie  possibly  will 
imagine  his  flour-sack  fuller,  and  in  the  glow  of  hope 
and  good-fellowship  invite  his  next  best  friend  to  drink 
with  him.  j\laybc  this  second  drink  will  assure  him  that 
the  river  may  yet  break  and  the  boats  come  in  with  flour 
enough  and  to  spare;  then  ho  will  ask  the  house  to  drink. 
The  bar  grows  more  and  more  crowded  as  the  night  turns 
toward  morning. 

Except  a  free-and-easy  theater,  a  dance  hall,  and  tho 
gambling  halls  which  iire  combined  with  saloons,  there  is 
nowhere  to  go — no  places  of  amusement,  I  might  be  per- 
mitted to  remark.  I  bought  a  Seattle  paper  dated  August 
28  for  50  cents,  which  after  reading  I  utilized  as  a  win- 
dow-blind. I  am  continually  interested  in  a  crowd  be- 
fore my  Avindow  reading  the  latest. 

Some  of  us  are  beginning  letters  homo.  Wo  find  the 
following  notice  posted  on  various  buildings  about  town: 
"John  Dallas  will  leave  Dawson  for  the  outside  upon  the 
first  breeze-up.  Letters  will  be  carried  for  the  sum  of  $1 
each."  The  Government  has  no  post-office  here,  and  I 
applied  for  a  possible  letter:  "All  mail  from  the  United 
States  to  Dawson  goes  on  down  the  riv(^r  to  Circle  City, 
the  first  American  post-office.  From  thence  it  may  be 
returned  here  when  opportunity  offers,  but  may  not  till 
spring." 

SAMUEL  SAWBOXES,  ESQ.,  M.D. 

Samuel  Sawbones  was  picked  up  en  roidc  and  is  a 
passenger  on  the  fair  Bella.     Tie  brought  his  kit  with 


SAMUEL  SA  WBONES,  M.  D. 


59 


him,  brought  everything  but  what  is  really  necessary  liero 
— Hour  and  oilier  niortfclti  of  grub.  He  brought  pills  and 
pukes,  tablets  and  triturates,  powders  and  plasters,  oils 
and  extracts  by  the  quart  and  gross.  He  had  a  nice  nt'W 
i:ign  with  gold  letters  ready  to  tling  to  the  breeze.  And 
1  think  he  had  assurance  and  conceit  to  hope  her  majesty's 
government  would  lire  a  salute  upon  the  momentous  oc- 
casion of  his  grand  announcement.  But  there  is  in  Samuel 
a  little  of  the  old-time  professional  courtesy — something 
little  cultivated  the  present  day — and  he  made  it  a  duty 
to  call  upon  the  authorities  and  the  located  doctors.  Cap- 
tain Constantine  told  him  there  is  a  law  of  the  North- 
west Territory  which  rcMpiires  a  i)hysician  to  have  a 
license  to  practice  medicine.  He  consoled  our  friend, 
however,  by  saying  he  recognized  the  fact  that  most  of 
the  camp  are  Americans;  that  it  is  unusual  to  enforce 
Dominion  laws  strictly  in  such  unsettled  mining  camps; 
and  that  with  the  power  invested  in  him  at  present  he 
would  not  enforce  this  law  until  pushed  to  it  by  the 
Canadian  physicians  ap])oaling  to  the  home  goverimient. 
Dr.  Wills,  military  pliysician  at  this  post,  greeted  Saw- 
bones kindly,  but  with  a  rather  bland  sardonic  grin  told 
him  in  brief  he  must  forego  the  })leasure  of  associating 
with  Canadian  doctors  in  ])i'acticing  the  healing  art  on 
Iho  Klondike.  Kecovering  from  the  shock,  Samuel  Savv- 
1  .'iios  took  occasion  to  talk  back: 

"Wo  knew  notliing  of  this  law  before  coming  here, 
■Vid  for  us  now  to  go  to  Calgary  to  stand  examinations 
lor  license  is  a  matter  of  a  season  gone  and  ;iii  immense 
expense.  It  is  virtually  being  kicked  out.  l)eside<,  under 
the  circumstances  we  liojie  for  the  usual  courtesies  ac- 
corded new  mining  cami)s,  tliat  of  self-govcnnnent."' 

"Yes,  yes,"  says  Dr.  Wills.  "I'lit  here  are  three  of 
us — myself,  Dr.  l?ichardson,  and  Dr.  Norway — who  have 


1 


I 


! 


60 


tuh:  dkcllmu  and  fall  of 


K.  .   \ 


iu      i 


permit?!,  ni;<l  wc  on  fully  ii!f(i;(l  to  a!l  ilic  pickiioss  Unit 
if,  or  i:iay  lie  [inAidii.;;.'.  Oi  (wiir.^c  it  is  h;ir:l  (Ui  n'o'.i 
n;:>J  ;)iiy  ui\v:\'  .'.i.'ict  i(  aii,  i»u!  i!  i,-  owv  ri;;'l.t,  aiitl  v." 
y.,',.;i;-i;  JK  rc[)ling  tiic'  ijwU!!li('s  (>[  (lie  Hiiuaii(-n,"' 

(Y'd  Sawbones,  wlio  had  [►ecu  iiiiiiioiis  in  it  f/oinic  no 
[''.)•■}  'ijTt'!,  j-aw  as  ho  trncl^M  d  down  a  dip  candle  wanning 
the  stove  and  lechmd  moss  sonp  in  lien  of  tiie  compound 
vcgeta])h;  heretofore  j)reliniinary  to  his  bacon  and  bean?. 
His  '(ilt-lettered  shingle,  he  say,;,  he  ran  nse  patching  up 
the  window,  but  the  drugs — he  dare  ]iot  throw  phy.dc  to 
the  dogs  liere  on  the  Yukon,  as  dogs  may  bo  the  stidf  of 
life  ere  spring.  Samuel  .Sawbones,  M.l).,  a  good  subject 
of  the  great  and  glorious  Ujiited  States,  n(;w  a  mendi- 
cant under  her  majesty's  flag,  not  knowing  where  to 
lay  his  head  nor  how  to  tnrn  an  honest  jxuny,  has  scores 
of  duplicates  in  this  rustle  for  millions  on  the  Khnidike. 

October  T.  The  sun  tlie  past  few  days  shines  ui)on  \!s  as 
brightly  as  it  does  outside,  but  it  docs  not  wai'm  us  equally 
M'ell.  Every  morning  a  great  crowd  is  masscil  before  eadi 
trading  company  store,  all  beseeching  an  order  of  goods. 
all  there  are  for  orders  taken  and  ])aid  for  eariy  in  thi' 
season.  It  is  getting  time  for  miners  to  be  oil'  and  at 
work.  Each  likewise  wishes  to  settle  the  pending  dii- 
ficulty  or  horror,  "Will  I  have  enough  to  see  mo  through?"' 
T/io  we.'ither  has  warmed  up  and  th.e  river  is  cl;  aring  oT 
ice,  nnd  there  is  dawning  a  little  hope  that  tv/o  boats  nov; 
Icadc;!  at  Fort  Yukon  may  come  up.  1!>iv,\'^v.'t.  two  bo.if- 
loads  of  provisions  will  only  lessen  the  number  of  exiti-^ 


T'^o 


which  are  preyiaring  for  the  fii'st  sulv-<aii|  lal  ice 
situation  of  the  present  exposes  i\^  ci-tiTt  of  the  h.umiMi 
kind.  Xow  arc  beginning  to  come  iMrili  the  inhuman  kir'i 
from  their  hidden  rachcr.  with  sup])lies  to  sell  at  tlie  f'b- 
uloup  prices  reached.  Tt  appears  that  tliese  msido  h.iy 
while  the  sun  shone,  which  was  nearly  twenty-four  Iiours 


V.',' 


SAMUEL  8A  WB0NE8,  M.  D. 


61 


\\\^ 


C    to 


I!  ,if- 
i;mi 


irs 


every  day  during  the  summer,  and  now  have  great  stacks 
stored  away  for  the  starving  poor — of  couroo  at  their 
own  prices.  Even  while  the  mosquito  was  stealing  their 
thrifty  black  blood  they  did  not  rest  from  their  labor, 
and  it  is  predicted  there  is  actually  enough  food  in  Daw- 
son if  distributed  as  it  should  be. 

Our  quarters  being  a  most  prominent  one  in  Dawson 
brings  us  many  cii'irs.  An  attorney  wants  a  window 
and  corner  for  an  oilice;  an  optician  wants  the  best  win- 
dow in  the  house  to  expose  his  spectacles ;  a  watchmaker 
oifers  $100  per  month  for  a  room;  so  althougli  the  bu.-i- 
ness  generally  is  stagnant,  we  see  no  lack  in  variety.  One 
business  house  has  a  sign:  "General  mercliandise,  hard- 
ware, drugs,"  1  looked  into  the  drug  department  and 
found  quinine,  salts,  iodide  of  potasli,  and  some  plasters, 
constituting  his  wliole  stock.  'J'here  is  no  drug  store  in 
Dawson,  but  I  hear  of  one  or  more  strandetl  on  the  way 
which  expect  to  get  here  for  the  spring  trade.  I  hope  so, 
for  it  is  so  refreshing  to  drop  into  a  drug  store  for  a 
whiff  of  pure  drugs  and  niedieines  when  one  is  choked 
up  with  microbes  from  uncleancd  streets  and  undrained 
swamps.  Is  there  an  undertaker  here?  I  do  not  know; 
only  the  indications  arc  that  he  will  not  thrive.  The  re- 
ports outside  of  the  many  deaths  on  the  Klondike  have 
been  not  only  exaggerated,  but  in  chief  false;  only  a  few 
I)eo])le  have  died  since  the  Klondike  has  been  discovered. 
A  man  is  reported  in  the  hospital  from  being  shot  while 
robbing  a  cache.  It  is  a  lamentable  fait  that  the  latch- 
string  must  not  hang  out  in  Dawson  unless  the  pro- 
prietor is  inside;  it  is  lamentable  likewise  that  we  have 
not  a  vigilante  organization.  Want  makes  thieves  of 
us  all.  The  mounted  police  are  not  ed'ective  in  protect- 
ing property,  and  I  doubt  if  they  have  any  desire  to 
burden  themselves  with  an  elfort.     To-day  a  cache  was 


! 


K ) 


P"!    ' 


¥  ( 


69 


71I/iJ  DIU'LINr:  AND  FALL  OP 


robbed  of  1,".'0()  j)ouii(l>  of  •^nih  and  no  clew  or  any  cf- 
f(jrt  at,  a  clew.  The  poiico,  so  iar  a,>  my  (jb.survation 
^'ocs,  ar(!  only  a  .'m; (•(•(•,•:»  in  arresting  drunks  and  kuuping 
order  in  the  saloons. 

'J'lie  only  nows  medium  we  liave  is  the  old-hidy  facility 
of  mouth  to  mouth.  All  business  is  posted  in  written 
form  upon  the  front  of  business  houses — lost,  astray, 
wants,  meetings,  individual  grievances,  locations,  etc.  For 
want  of  news  we  sit  in  contemj)lation.  If  the  climate  on 
the  Yukon  is  so  glorious  as  is  being  talked,  we  will  want 
our  old  bones  to  lie  here;  yet,  again,  if  the  mosquitoes 
and  gnats  arc  as  bad  as  pictured,  then  will  we  not  have  to 
spend  our  old  ago  lighting  these  posts? 

All  kiiuls  of  mechanics,  with  professional  and  business 
men,  arc  here,  and  their  first  impulse  is  to  jump  their 
legitimate  calling  and  fly  to  the  diggings  to  bag  gold 
rather  than  to  earn  it.  Contemplating  the  possibilities 
of  this  is  about  the  pleasantest  of  our  pastime.  CJoing  on 
the  street  and  viewing  the  signs  still  hanging — the  Dc\- 
monico,  tlie  Metropole,  the  Klondike — makes  one's  mouth 
water,  but  the  empty  tables  recall  one  to  his  sense  of  the 
emptiness  of  many  stories  floating  about  and  quench  his 
enthusiasm.  We  And  several  of  the  hotels  open,  but  on 
the  European  plan — find  your  own  blankets,  brew  your 
coffee,  and  make  your  slai)jack  on  the  hotel  stove,  and 
pay  $3  per  night. 

Octolier  8.  The  river  is  comparatively  free  of  ice  to- 
day and  boats  might  come  in  with  food  supplies,  but  I 
fear  the  captains,  from  my  observations,  will  exert  them- 
selves more  toward  furnishing  their  owti  winter's  lux- 
uries than  toward  re1i(>ving  Ihe  starving  Klondikers.  At 
Fort  Yukon,  400  miles  below,  is  a  big  supply  of  sub- 
stantials,  bnt  further  on  and  down  at  St.  ]\Tichaels  the  best 
of  foods  as  well  as  liquids  are  stored,  and  I  will  wager 


I 


SAMCF.L  8AWB0NKS,  M.  D. 


63 


no  boat  will  return  to  w?,  but  will  seek  winter  quarters  at 
tliese  coii<^('nial  points. 

The  ytrila'  is  ^till  on.  The  miner  can  have  his  choice 
of  workinn^  for  wages,  working  a  lay,  or  prospecting  for 
himself;  tlicr.'foro  ho  will  not  have  wages  come  down. 
The  bonanza  kings  cjinnot  stiirvc  him  out— only  the  trad- 
ing companies  Ciin  do  tliiit.  .Men  are  considering  the 
alternatives  of  going  out  on  the  first  ice  and  of  possible 
hunger  here. 

"Can  I  make  you  a  Iradc  for  a  door  lock,  sir?"  And 
a  little  man  witli  a  big  gunny  sack  popped  his  head  in 
our  door.  "Will  give  ten  candles  for  any  old  thini;  of 
a  lock." 

We  wanted  ten  cnndlos.  but  had  no  door  lock.  Another 
cache  was  robbed  Inst  night.  A  box  of  candles  to-day  is 
worth  $100,  yet  the  light  of  ten  candles  will  not  let  us  sec 
any  gain  in  robbing  our  own  door  of  its  lock— virtu^illy 
robbing  our  varhr,  Xo  oil  in  the  market  and  not  much  in 
the  town.  To  the  miner  candles  are  as  serious  a  want 
as  grub. 

October  10.  A  raft  of  fresh  lurf  has  just  landed, 
about  30  head,  and  is  selling  at  from  $1  to  $1.35  per 
pound.  T\\oy  were  driven  over  the  pass  and  held  on  the 
upper  river  imiil  cold  weather  overtook  them,  then  killed, 
frozen,  and  sliij^ped.  It  is  calculated  in  all  that  200  head 
of  cattle  and  800  sheep  will  have  reached  Daw.^on  before 
navigation  from  tlie  liend  closes.  ]Ior.«eflesh  is  advertised 
to-day  at   35   cents   for  dug    f, ,(,,].      j   .^j,j   ^^^^   p^,^^   ^|j,^j. 

some  one  or  more  may  not  be  laying  in  this  dog  feed  as  a 
reserve  supply  for  the  dogs'  master. 

A  prominent  .Vow  York  expert  in  the  interest  of  out- 
side parties  dropped  in  with  the  following  remark:  "This 
country  is  not  as  big  as  rejjresentrd.  Tlien;  is  no  room  for 
tlio  thousands  of  people  poui'ing  in,  no  business,  no  de- 


64 


TITK  nr.CLTXE  AXD  FALL  OF 


niaiul  for  thciii/'  A  little  lutor  anotlior  mininj:^  expert, 
just  as  proiiiiiu'iit,  seated  liiiiisell'  on  my  best  stool  with 
this  good  word:  "1  am  just  down  From  the  mines.  It 
is  tiu!  hi<;<fest  country  any  of  us  have  ever  seen.  I  iiave 
been  around  the  woild  and  mined  in  many  j)hifes,  hut 
this  far  surpasses  them  all;  yes,  ii  great  gold  country 
which  hewihlers  us."' 

Almost  daily  we  run  into  a  hatch  of  nu-n  and  find  it  a 
"miners'  meeting."  They  discuss  the  strike  aiul  all  other 
matters  they  thiidv  pertain  to  their  business — very  often 
things  they  know  nothing  about. 

All  kinds  of  meetings  are  ])o))ular  and  draw  n  crowd. 
There  are  no  haUs,  schoolhouses,  or  places  for  a  meet- 
ing, therefore  wo  meet  in  any  nook  Mr.  President  may 
appoint.  To-day  there  was  a  large  meeting  in  the  chief 
dance  hall.  All  the  girls  were  piled  away  behind  the 
bar  and  .Mr.  O.  Sullivan  occU(iicd  the  sp(>aker's  stand.  IFe 
■was  offering  to  this  community  his  big  scow,  just  arrived 
fi'oni  head  waters;  lu;  was  olfering  it  to  the  throng  for 
trans[)ortation  out  of  this  cam  p.  lie  offers  scow  and 
crew  for  a  run  down  to  American  territory,  where  is 
stored  boat-loads  of  grub;  to  the  opulent  who  furnish 
their  own  blankets  at  a  rate  of  .$.'>0  per  head,  the  indigent 
free.  ^Fr.  0.  Sullivan  is  an  old-timer  on  the  Yukon  ami 
knows  the  needs  of  the  country.  Tie  brought  this  scow 
in  loaded  Mith  an  assortment  of  the  best  whiskies,  but  is 
a  little  starthnl  upon  arrival  at  the  prejudice  existing 
against  wet  goods  in  favor  of  solid  food  and  substantials. 

Captain  Hansen,  of  the  A.  C.  Company,  has  made  a 
little  speech  advocating  "^^r.  0.  Sullivan's  scheme,  not 
that  he  admires  the  gentleman's  tlirifty  generosity  but  he 
declares  tbere  is  little  possibility  of  any  further  supplies 
coming  into  Dawson,  and  it  will  be  wise  for  the  unpro- 
vided to  go  down  where  supplies  are  stored.    Our  chari- 


8AMUKL  8 A  \Y HONES,  M.  D. 


65 


(iil)k'  friciul  (>.  Siilliviiii  liiis  imofhcr  srow  on  (ho  upju'r 
^'iikoii  witli  a  (••i\r)f{)  ol"  v)i\:,<  jiiui  ^irls.  Tlicy  si'i.m  to  luivc 
jtiii'tcd  cjihlc  uilli  llii'  \vlii>ky  Ijiir^c,  hut  may  hv  ('.xpcctcd 
any  day. 

.lust  now  one  of  our  loafers  rcsnrrt'ctt'd  from  the  l)i)t- 
tom  pocket  of  his  parkee  live  little  gold  sacks,  liis  stt)ry 
is  this:  "My  paid  had  these  all  full  of  dust.  In  one  night 
lie  lost  one,  two — all  live  at  the  faro  tahle.  'i'hi'ii  he  hor- 
rowed  $5  from  me,  for  \vhi(;h  he  gave  these  as  security." 
No  comments  were  passi'd  on  his  fool  partner.  Here  his 
reputation,  his  character,  and  his  executive  ahility  will 
not  sull'er.  It  is  such  enteri)rise,  as  nnich  as  anything  else, 
that  makes  Klondike  and  other  mining  camps,  This  man 
will  carefully  step  across  the  s\vamj)s  from  one  nigger- 
head  to  another,  ovi.'r  hills  and  across  gulches  with  his 
bed  and  hoard,  serving  umler  the  load  of  a  packing  jenny; 
and  after  many  days  one,  two — all  five  little  sacks  will  he 
refilled  and  hi'ought  to  town  to  replenish — to  supply  the 
motive  ])ower  of  this  end  of  the  camp.  I'he  })roj)rietors 
o!  the  gambling  dens  seldom  hoard  the  dust  and  the  trad- 
ing companies  are  the  iinal  hohlers.  They  enrich  the  out- 
side world  with  it  in  exchange  for  the  good  things  we 
need  here.  Our  five  little  buckskin  bags  do  not  repre- 
sent  uiillions,  but  they  nndti])ly  into  millions. 

()c(ol)cr  ]v.  The  higli  pi'i(('s  have  not  dropped  out 
of  jMovisions  yet;  buildings  and  rents  k(>ep  steady;  wood 
lias  an  upward  tciulency  at  $.30  per  cord;  the  market  iu 
general  tends  upward,  and  one  is  obliged  to  deal  with 
speculators,  the  stores  being  about  finished.  Troubles 
lend  one's  ears  to  others'  troubles;  frights  send  one  poking 
about  after  others  })ossibly  lurking.  We  arc  regaled  with 
the  possible  ])estilences  awaiting  Dawson,  The  springs 
freeze  up  in  winter  and  the  s|)ring  opens  up  only  murky 
water  in  the  Yukon.     There  la  no  possible  drainage  for 


CO 


TIIH  Dice  I.  IMC  AND  FALL  OF 


ifl 


111'  (own.  'I'lif  piilico  ^'ovcrimu'tit  cxtTciscs  no  sanitiirv 
j»ri'v';i!ii  ions  iiinl  uc  iiif  tliciiU'iM'd  (liy  our  rt'lators)  witli 
jn'olilic  lu'stirci'oiis  (lisctiscs  the  coniin,!;  sju'lii^'.  'I'li-' 
('jiii!i(li;in  (loitdi-s  will  \v.\\v  a  picnu — will  clean  up  a  !»!;,' 
Inrliinc  in  a  little  lime  and  from  a  doul)irul  capital.  Our 
I'riend  Samuel  Sawhones,  M.I).,  not  beint^  in  it,  will  re- 
lleet  upon  each  ruiieral  pile,  and  filled  with  envy  will  say 
"I  (old  you  H),"  and  heap  liis  iK'iiedictions  upon  the 
little  swelled  heads  and  hi;;  palfy  ba^'s  of  the  aforenien- 
tioni'd  jii'esumpluous,  i^M'eedy  pack — these  conceited  wise- 
acres, envious  and  al'raid  ul'  the  skill  and  compililion 
of  American  dot  tors. 

Whilst  writin;^'  a  miner  dropped  in  from  (lie  l''ld'irinlo 
di^'^^in^s.  lie  was  in  ill-humor  and  seemed  ill-miturcd. 
He  came  here  from  police  head(pnirlers.  His  list  is  hun- 
dled  up  in  a  handanna  handkerchief  and  he  says  it  lar- 
ricH  the  foo(prin(s  of  a  man's  jaw  hone.  Was  some  victim 
cryin<(  bread  to  him,  ami  in  (his  way  lie  shut  him  up? 
Well,  the  incident  has  no  connection  with  his  visit  to  the 
])olice;  it  only  sliows  he  is  a  bad  mati.  Two  days  ago  he 
returned  to  his  home  in  Mldorado  and  I'ouiul  his  favhi' 
clean  and  clear  of  cveTylliin^''  edible.  He  was  bere  to-day 
after  a  search-warrant.  The  police  autlioritii's  did  not  ,Lri\'e 
liim  one:  they  informe(l  him,  be  says,  it  would  not  be 
pood  Canadian  law.  My  own  reason  is  they  do  not  want 
to  be  bui'dcned  with  the  thief.  He  was  wrathy  as  if  be- 
ini^-  laslied  by  the  lion's  tail.  "We,  (lie  miners,  will  ju^et 
out  a  search-warrant  of  our  own  ;  wo  will  make  an  ex- 
ani])le  of  the  WTctch."  It  is  to  be  devoutly  wished  they 
may.  Thini^s  have  come  to  such  a  ])ass  that  one  cannot 
turn  liis  head  to  watch  his  rlyht  hand  but  that  his  left 
will  be  rol)bed.  The  vi;jrilantes  were  ffood  cure — good 
physic  ill  the  old  Montana  days,  and  I  think  will  be  good 


fiA  MUKI.  SA  wnONh'S,   M.  D, 


67 


fticdicinr  in  (licsc  d.iys  of  su;:jjir  pills  iind  liiMot  trihi- 
ratcs. 

Octoljcr  Ki.  At  our  mess  iiicciini^  to-dny  it  was 
*'/i'r.so/rr(/,  that  uikKt  the  |Ut>ciit  .>-lrait  of  the  liacoti  and 
iMiiii  iiiai'kt't  wt'  now  and  luTcaftcr  coiilinc  ourselves  to 
two  meals  daily;  and  u'ltvrcds,  the  run  on  candh's  and 
oil  has  set  llicir  price  (piitu  out  of  si^dit,  be  it  furlluT 
resolved,  tiiat  ordinary  gossip  and  simple  story-telling 
inu.-t  !)('  conduett'd  under  cover  of  darkness,  and  at  no  lime 
must  more  than  one  candh'  he  hurned  save  in  sickness  or 
death."  In  the  gloom  and  di'prossion  (d'  one  IVehle  sick- 
ly tallow  candle  1  am  ni»w  recording  the  ahove  resolu- 
tions. As  half  the  story  is  in  the  telling,  the  gesture,  the 
eye  of  the  teller — no  one  wants  to  lu'ar  a  story  to-night. 

The  boats  do  not  come  in,  hut  we  do  not  (piit  looking 
for  them.  We  have  re|)laced  the  card  ahove  the  door, 
"There \s  no  place  like  home,"  by  this  one:  "Kat,  tlrink, 
and  be  merry."  We  do  not  want  to  think  about  home 
too  much,  but  rather  iuclinc  to  bravado  to  keep  our 
courage  up. 

1  resurrected  the  following  grub  bill,  the  prevailing 
prices  of  the  past  summer  and  tlu;  ])rices  of  to-day  had 
the  boats  all  come  in:  I  case  eatchuj),  $24;  H  lemons, 
$!..")<»;  '17)  pounds  apricots,  .$S.;o;  '.'0  poumls  lard,  .$(> ; 
(]0  pounds  salt,  $<! ;  1  case  condensed  milk,  ^'l\;  249 
pounds  ham,  ^ll'i;  1  keg  i)ickles,  $') ;  )l\  pounds  j)cpper, 
$2.o():  1  case  rolled  oats,  $1S;  (»  cans,  baking  jiowder, 
$4.50;  1  case  apples,  $18;  10  pounds  colfee,  $5;  1  pound 
butter,  $59. 

If  only  the  boats  would  come  in,  we  .should  then  get 
rid  of  that  ghost  that  haunts  us  to  say:  "IVtter  take  that 
seven-hundred-mile  trip  out  over  the  ice  the  first  freeze- 
up."  The  millions  on  the  Klondike,  too,  haunt  us,  and 
we  long  to  be  part  owners  of  the  iifly  tons  of  gold  to  be 


w 


TIIH  DIWlJNi:  AM)  FALL  OF 


fhippod  liomc  noxl  HUtiinuT.     We  iirc  inclined  to  look  the 
llirciitcnrd    raniinc   in   llic   face,  jiltlmii^^h   \\v  know   it   is 
jjo'^sihlc  for  it  to  ;,'('t  tin'  lu'st  of  us  in  its  ^diustly  return 
stiUf.      Our    iiK'Ss    is   or^Muizin;,'   Ji    relief   expedition — in 
pluin  words,  are  outfitting'  fur  a  iriooso  hunt.     \v  nii;;lity 
hunter  of  the   Koekies  ami  of  the   plains,  drum   a   littlo 
melody  id'  envy  (»n  your  breakfast-tahle  and  remark:  "Oh, 
the  glories  of  this  moose  chase  must  be  worth  a  run  ri;;ht 
iido  the  jaws  of  huni^'cr!"     Well,  wo  will  outllt,  and  tirst 
with  clothing  of   which   the   ni'cessaric  s   might    nuik(?   us 
quite  oblivious  to  the  kicks  of  the  most  villainous   foot- 
ball team;  then   must    mil  our  blaidvcts,  j)ack  our  stove, 
tent,  axe,  cooking  utensils,  and  grub.     .\ow  trot  out,  you 
dead  ox,  and  we  will  load.     Oh!  oh  I  oh!      Here  is  wlierc 
the  fun  drops  out.     We  must  load  ourselves  fifty  pounds 
to  the  man,  and  with  this,  trudging  through  the  snow  and 
over  ranges,  the  novelty  will  remain,  but   the  glories  and 
excitenuMits  of  moose-hunting  (piite  die  out.     We  call  it 
then  not  moose-hunting,  but  a  relief  party.     It  is  remarked 
to  me:  "Should  you  kill  a  moose  of,  say,   1,0(10  ])ounds, 
what  would  you   do  with   it?"     That   has   rutt   before  oc- 
curred to  me.     Possibly  wo  would  sit  down  and  cat  of  it 
until  it  dwindled  away  to  a  portable  })ackago ;  then  each 
mighty  hunter  may  tug  at  the  toboggan  and  reach  camp 
with  the  shadow  of  a  moose. 

The  query  of  cold  occupies  us  witli  that  of  liunger, 
tliough  it  does  not  frighten  us.  A  fifty-dollar  Yukon 
stove  is  one  item  in  barring  out  cohl.  Then  we  look  well 
to  the  moss  chiid-cing  of  our  logs.  We  liave  no  mud,  there- 
fore pack  between  h^gs  and  every  possible  air-liole  with 
the  moss  found  in  abundance.  Old-timers  say  a  little 
later  we  shall  mix  snow  and  water  and  apply  the  slusli 
to  (he  outside,  and  this  will  prove  a  valuable  protection 
for  the  six  months  of  severe  cold.     l*eo])le  here  in  tlie 


SA  MVEJ.  SA  WnONES,    M  D. 


60 


riirly  poiipon  rut  wood,  wliidi  is  in  plonly  \ip  tl:o  rivor, 
iiikI  Honied  it  down  on  nil'ts  to  I)ii\v.«.oii.  The  luniks  aro 
lined  with  it,  :ind  tlicrc  seems  no  denrlli  «d'  it,  oidy  it  id 
$;{()  per  cord,  with  an  upward  tendency.  We  have  as 
yet  not  experienced  severe  cold  and  laii  only  spei  ulate 
what    it    may   he. 

Octoher  v'l.  The  several  Indian  hands  not  too  far  up 
and  down  the  ^'ukon  yearly  l)ivouack(M|  at  the  mouth  fd* 
the  Troiidik  to  ealeh  salmon  and  hunt.  One  of  several 
hoonu'rs,  who.  as  are  all  hoomers,  was  trained  to  hato 
je^'itimate  work,  looke(l  ujion  this  location  with  desire. 
One  I^adeau  siiuatted  ri;j,iit  here  on  the  inu'th  side,  no\vr 
the  town  site  (tf  Daw.^on.  Then  he  looked  with  envy 
upon  Sixty  Mile  up  the  river  and  I'orfy  Mile  down  tho 
river,  and  lie  said:  "We  must  draw  u])on  those  pros- 
perous camps  and  huild  us  up  here."  They  salted  tho 
hars  up  tho  stream  and  sot  the  Indians  to  nosing,'  ahout 
for  ;.;old.  Fimilly  a  ?(piaw  up  Hoiianxa  Creek  actually 
disoovorcd  ^old  and  imparted  the  discovery  to  Siwasli 
(lOorrro,  her  lord  and  master.  (Jeor^'e,  like  a  ^'ood  son, 
liad  adopted  tho  customs  aIor)fj  with  the  trilie;  he  ^mim- 
hlod  away  his  <fold  and  drank  up  his  furs  as  fast  ag 
his  squaw  could  furnish  them.  lie  ,u"ot  away  down  to 
Circle  City  in  one  of  his  trading,'  hoats,  and  in  a  con- 
fidontial   drunk  pavo   away   this   find    up   Bonanza.      His 


very    approc 


ativo    audience    at    Circle,    300    mil(>s    do 


wn 


tho  Yukon,  immodiatelv  dosorted  tlio  har  over  which  thev 


cleaned  tho  news  for  the  hars  on  the  Iwm 


in/a,    hu 


not 


familiar  witli  deep  (lifrl,^n;^^s  their  stampede  was  a  failure. 
A  little  later  Siwash  (Joor^e  vouclied  for  Mrs.  (ieori^'e's 
find  hv  an  oxliihit  of  a  sack  of  fine  nnu'iTots  at  the  <jamin;^' 
taI)los  of  Forty  j\Iile  and  Circle.  Tl 
stampede,  yet  it  was  in  fact  a  second 


lere   M'as   a    itiirirer 


lure 


In  trutli, 
tho  two  stampedes  were  not  the  miners  of  the  country. 


t 


I' 


70 


TUK  DECLINE  AND  FALL  OF 


u 


\K-i 


w 


liut  tho  roinerp  of  .irold.  Wli;it  I  rii(\an  is,  aftor  tlio 
nii'nT  (Iclvos  ninl  di.irs  ilio  ffold  ilicsi^  oM-tiincr.s,  liis  ac- 
C'lin  niininu'iii  in  the  ((luntry,  (l!'<lii(t  it  from  his  sack  in 
a  (liousii!i(l-;iml-oii('  wavs  ami  set  it  alloat  aiiioni,'  tlictii- 
si'hcs.  This,  Villi  will  iiiKlcrst.-md,  liy  the  aid  of  siilooiis, 
(hnu'iii;c  halls,  llicalt'i's,  f;ii'o  tahlcs,  gainljliii<,%  \vic!<cd  j^nrls, 
etc.  Of  coiii-sc  tilt')'  iiiakr  a  failure  of  anylhiii^-  wliidi 
needs  pick  and  ,-hov(d,  lii  Au;j:ust  was  the  first  Ftamiiede, 
but  now  ahoul  Jainiai'v,  1897,  started  the  third  ptain[)edo 
lO  the  Kloi'dike.  and  this  one  stayed.  It  wont  from  Cirolo 
City  in  <,reat  style.  Circle's  most  mauniificent  woman  with 
^vp'oiis  do--  teams  headeil  the  iu'ocession.  The  miners 
of  (lie  Cii'  !e  or  Ilirch  Creek  district  >vere  winterinf;  and 
joined  the  stai.i|ie(le  i^ivin,u^  it  liackhone.  Only  thrcH'  souls 
of  3, ()(•(;  remained  n  Circle,  ami  none  I'cturncd  to  tel!  tho 
tale.  Tluis  the  Klondike  was  started  on  its  record  as  a 
world-heater.  The  .Xmerican  in  Siwash  rose  superior  to 
his  ado])ted  life,  an.  le  helped  all  ]iis  uticles  and  aunts 
and  cousins  of  his  wife  in  the  trihe  to  good  claims,  and 
he  with  some  of  them  are  still  th(>  happy  ouners.  Bonanza 
Creek  empties  into  the  Klondiice  three  miles  from  its 
mouth.  Twelve  miles  \\x>  Bonanza  was  Discovery  Claim. 
W'ry  soon  all  the  Bonanza  was  h)cated,  and  as  the  tail 
ended  the  stampede  came  in,  the  droiu^s,  the  sii;,i.",<2:ards, 
and  tlio  pot  rattlers  of  the  camp  had  nowhere  to  opo. 
Ahove  Di-^eovery  one  mih^  a  trilnitaiy  enters  Kldorad*^ 
Creek.  TTero  these  disapp  )'nted  stampeders,  in  despair 
;M  not  havinir  a  claim,  loi-aicd.  T.o  and  h(>hold.  this 
Fidorado  loomed  ^^^  the  head  center  of  all  this  mininfT 
district  and  holds  its  preced(Mit  to  this  day.  Tt  is  esti- 
mated that  two-thirds  of  last  year's  j^old  output  wa- 
Eldorado  gold,  and  this  year  it  will  hold  the  same  ratio. 


SAMUEL  ISA  WBO^'Eti,  M.  D. 


71 


MISSl()\AIlIi:s. 

If  yc'ii  get  tluTo  before  1  ilo,  look  out  for  mo,  I'm  com- 
ing too.  Siiro  liiough,  the  indomitable  ]\Ietiiodist  who  is 
ever  singing  thf  above  has  eome.  lie  has  liad  one  ser- 
viee,  has  a  ehurdi.  \\\\\\  .$T(M»  paid,  as  jicr  aniiouneenieiit, 
furnished  witii  slumps  and  slabs  as  pev\s,  antl  a  whole 
catalogue  of  cliunh  work  organized  and  in  operation.  'I'he 
ie.xt  (d'  lo-day  was:  "rH/ar  ye  one  another's  burden."  The 
usual  collcclion  followed  this  admonition:  "Xow  ])ut  in 
coin  if  you  have  it  :  if  luU.  ju,-l  spill  into  the  j)late  some 
of  your  dust  ;  if  broke,  wliy,  tin  n.  bring  us  a  fi-w  ounces  (d" 
flour  or  any  canned  goods,"  The  regnlai-  amiouncenients 
were  a  little  uni(iue  t'\('n  to  we  old  pi'ospcctoi's.  "Class 
meeting  this  afternoon  ;  I'tgular  service  this  evening.  l''or 
the  meeting  to-n.ight  I  would  ic(|uc.-t  eac  h  of  you  to  blow 
out  the  caiuUe  you  may  be  using,  wrap  il  up,  antl  bring 
it  aloui?.  You  mav  be  at  libcrlv  to  take  In. me  with  von 
wliat  may  be  left.  To-niori'ow  iiiorning  all  good  bretlii'eii 
will  please  meet  me  at  the  clinrcb  v.  iili  axes,  and  we  to- 
gether will  make  a  little  exiii'-ion  up  the  hillside  for  the 
purpose  of  wooding  the  churcii  foi'  the  winter;  W'ediuvs- 
day  evening  \ve  will  meet  to  organize  our  book  exchange 
and  lili'-ary.  All  bring  yonr  be^ks  and  we  will  excbangt? 
one  with  the  other.  Dr.  McCiiiie.  an  excellent  phy-ician 
connected  with  this  mi>sion,  will  be  pleaseil  to  extend  his 
Fervice  to  any  sick,  free  to  those  who  avi  unabb^  to  pay.'' 
From  the  start  this  mission  is  mailing  we  can  bet  it  will 
not  starve  out  this  winter.  1  beli(\-e  it  is  the  right  thing 
— nuiy  be,  however,   in   the  wrong  place. 

r.  S.— By  the  St.  Oeorgc!  This  wa.-.  not  :i  ^Feihodist 
nuvting  at  all,  but  a  l^'csbyterian  nussion.  Well,  the 
''walk  and  conversation"  was  -o  Methodist  and  so  un- 
Presbyterian  that  I  must  bo  pardoned  fur  the  mistake. 


n 


TEE  DECLINE  AND  FALL  OF 


Even  the  last  dosing  act  was  lifc-liko  '^^otho(list ;  the 
prcac'lier,  resting  his  ghince  upon  Sister  Cirecn,  the  only 
woman  present,  as  if  wishing  to  say  "Pray  for  us,"  Init 
passing  on  said:  "Brother  Stephen  Furleny,  please  lead 
us  in  prayer." 

VKJILANTI'S. 


I 


l^f. 
m 


"It  is  something  remarkahU;  the  way  yoii  old-timers 
applaud  the  old  vigilantes'  organization,  the  way  you  old 
fool  miners  fall  down  and  worship  the  dead  and  buried, 
mourn  over  what  has  not  even  left  footprints  in  the  dust 
of  time.  But  you  old  trani])s  never  will  tii'e  of  has-beens, 
and  the  trails  of  the  Hockies,  vour  stories  of  the  latch- 
strings  hanging  out,  and  liow  you  hanged  Henry  Pluni- 
mer  for  robbing  sluice-boxes.     Now,  let  up  on  it!" 

"Well,  pard,  let  me  have  just  this  little  bit  of  back  talk 
and  I  will  stick  to  the  pork  and  beans  of  this  country. 
My  old  bones  arc  sort  o'  stilfening  of  late,  and  1  took 
the  long,  easy  route,  the  Behring  Sea  trail,  to  reach  this 
camp.  The  old  sailing  tub  Cleveland  had  on  board  1G3 
souls — embryotic  miners  ])ossibly,  the  same  manner  of  men 
who  pass  muster  for  honest}''  outsi<le.  Well,  out  only  a 
few  days  and  we  began  losing  our  tobacco,  pipes,  papers 
and  books.  On  board  were  a  captain  ar  i  lieutenant  of 
the  United  States  regular  army,  a  UnitiHl  States  marshal 
for  Alaska  with  three  assistants,  and  the  ollicers  of  the 
boat  with  arbitrary  powers.  Stealing  WHMit  on — pillows, 
shirts,  blankets,  anything,  everything,  and  all  the  power 
aboard  seemed  helpless.  1  actually  knew  poker  chips  that 
could  not  be  won  to  bo  stolen  off  the  board.  At  Fort 
Yukon  three  barrels  of  l)onded  whisky  were  stolen  from 
the  warehiOuso  right  out  between  the  legs  of  a  United 
States  customs  oilicer  sitting  there,  and  nothing  but  the 


SAMUEL  SA  WB0NE8,  M.  D. 


73 


hoops  and  staves  were  ever  discovered.  Here  at  Dawson 
matters  crrow  worse  from  dav  to  da  v.  The  oilicer  of  the 
mounted  police  seems  a  clever  and  willing  guardian,  yet 
stealing  grows  greater  and  bolder,  whole  cachis  are  robbed, 
and  oiK^  never  knows  how  much  })etty  tliii'viiig.  No 
doubt  you  and  I  will  have  to  guard  oui-  .^luict'-boxus  with 
sliotguns  when  Ave  clean  up.  The  mounted  police  are  ever 
walking — strutting — up  and  down  the  street,  but  they 
never  catch  a  thief,  they  never  hang  a  rustler.  They  nuiy 
be  good  soldiers,  on  the  principle  that  everything  nmst 
bo  good  for  something,  but  soldicM's  ai'c  no  g()(^d  in  a 
mining  camp  as  peace  ollicers  are  never  any  good  on  a 
mining  stampede.  This  is  everything  in  a  nutshell,  and 
you  cannot  crack  it.  I  need  not  repeat  the  situation  down 
in  ]\rontana,  Colorado,  and  California  when  the  vigilantes 
ruled  supreme.  You  know  the  latch-string  was  ])orfectly 
safe  hanging  out;  that  our  dust  was  secure  in  a  tin  box 
within  our  cabins;  we  never  lost  a  cracker  from  our  packs; 
that  we  camped  on  the  trail  and  did  not  have  to  padlock 
our  gunny  sacks  to  our  fi^ct  to  hold  them  safe.  You 
latter-day  saints  may  preach  about  mounted  police  and 
the  British  lion's  protectorate,  but  they  never  gave  us 
back  this  day  our  daily  bread  that  was  sure  to  liave  been 
stolen  yesterday  unless  being  guarded  with  u  shotgun; 
now  I  let  up  on  you." 


'  •V'' 


:|i 


•er 
liat 

)rt 

pm 
led 

he 


THE    TRALL. 

Down  in  ]\rontana  it  used  to  l)o  the  pride  of  S0ci»?l> 
— of  the  diggings — that  there  had  gone  out,  spread  worl'l- 
wide,  the  saying:  '"'The  latch-string  always  hangs  out," 
Alas!  that  we  may  not  say  as  nnieh  for  the  Klondike! 
There  the  big-hearted,  generous-handed  prospectors  mady 
"camping  on  the  trail"  an  inspiration  rather  than  a  stare 


!  i 
it 


74 


THE  DECLINE  AND  FALL  OF 


11  ■ 


into  the  cold  face  of  liclplossnc??.  The  adinixiurc  of 
nationalities  makes  it  doulit  ful  if  oven  plenty  of  grub  will 
correct  tlic  ])res('iit  selfishness  of  llic  ciimi). 

The  trail  iti  itself  is  a  different  proposition  here  from 
clsev^ere.  At  IIk;  present  titue  the  inuekluek  is  the  most 
popular  foolgear.  Tho  niuekhick  is  a  rawhide  hoot  of 
sealskin,  with  or  wilhoiil  hair  on.  It  will  stand  waier, 
if  well  oiled,  without  leakin<,';  is  very  light,  and  one  can 
WT'ar  innumerable  socks  to  kei  ]>  warm.  Later,  as  the 
winter  })recludes  any  water  on  the  trail  from  thawing  or 
ice  breaks,  the  Indian  nioeeasin  of  moose  skin  mostly 
takes  the  place  of  the  muekluck.  Persons  wear  one,  two, 
three  pairs  of  woolen  socks  ami  a  pair  of  tluck  (Jennau 
socks  inside  the  moccasins,  and  this  protects  a  foot  from 
all  sorts  of  cold.  One  is  safe  from  frost  unless  by  chance 
he  gets  wet  1 1  is  clothing  is  very  soft,  thick,  liglit  wool- 
ens; a  parkee,  much  like  a  ("hina;Man's  outside  shirt, 
and  of  ticking  or  drilling,  is  [)opular  M'ear  because  very 
light  and  a  great  bar  to  cold  by  virtue  of  affording  a 
wind-break.  The  only  fur  is  the  Yukon  caj),  a  thing 
SMI  generic.  Summer  trails  are  the  trying  ones.  (<um 
boots  are  the  proper  resort,  but  they  have  many  draw- 
backs, they  rro  quite  too  heavy  for  a  long  tramp  and 
too  warm;  they  often  overflow  (U'  get  overflowed  with 
water  and  mud,  which  makes  them  quite  unnavigable.  A 
new  summer  trail  or  an  old  one  worn  deep  in  mud  is 
best  navigated  in  a  i^air  of  liglit  shoes,  having  in  view 
the  procedure  of  wading  through  wai(>r  and  mud,  getting 
thoroughly  saturated,  and  at  the  end  changing  for  dry 
stockings.  Trails  are  through  swam])S,  jum])s  from  nig- 
ger-head to  nigger-head,  over  fallen  tree^.  snags,  over 
mountains.  N'owhcre  is  there  a  free  spurt  until  a  trail 
is  broken  by  use.  "On  the  trail"  here  is  a  different  prop- 
osition from  elsewhere  because  of  the  distances  between 


SAMUKL  SAWnONKS.  M.I). 


76 


siip{)ly  points,  hi  t'iict,  llicrc  iii'c  hd  supply  dcjiots  other 
than  this  oru'  at  Dawson,  and  thi'  siinph'st  jjossihU;  .-"tain- 
peile  or  business  re(|uires  a  hi^^  h)a(l — from  50  to  100 
j)()iin(ls  is  the  eonmion  jiack  on  the  llonan/.a  trail.  We 
may  meet  a  man  aii'l  (!'\Lr  in  sh'd  with  perhaps  30(' 
pouruls.  I  saw  snme  xciMlahlc  beasts  of  biiiden  amon,<^ 
my  l'elh>\v-nien,  they  .-leddin^-  individually  1500  j)ound.-. 
As  yet  sm)W  is  limiti'd  and  >leddiiiu''  is  veiy  j)oor,  so  tlutt 
300  pounds  is  almost  an  o.\"s  li»ad.  On  my  trij)  up  the 
Klondike  1  met  many  anil  all  sorts  of  p;i<!;ers  and  pa.cks, 
men  fag^^^ed,  j)ec'ring  straight  ahead,  niechanieally  movinv;, 
apparently  ready  to  drop.  Imt  nevei-  droj)ping  until  ilieir 
twenty  or  thii'tv  miles  are  mad<'.  When  night  overtakes 
us  on  a  stampede  or  prosjx'cting  tour  we  jiilcli  a  tei:i 
and  sice])  upon  ])ine  houghs.  Oh.  how  our  hones  do  aelu' ! 
We  dream  all  through  tlu'  night  tluit  we  ,-till  go  on;  the 
pack  is  breaking  evt'ry  bone  and  rending  every  muscle 
in  the  body;  maybe  we  dream  of  sueh  a  luxury  as  a 
latch-string,  but  n'"er  that  it  lets  us  in  out  of  the  cold. 
October  2il  WvW.  it  is  all  up  with  the  boats  and  down 
with  the  hoped-for  ne.v  supplies.  The  river  is  making 
its  final  freeze-up;  \vv  are  inventoiwing  our  cuclii's  to  de- 
termine the  light  we  will  Inive  to  make  thi'ough  the  winti.'r. 
Xow  and  then  crops  out  the  discoNcry  of  a  big  c((clic — 
one  of  lloui',  of  eaiulles,  of  baeon — whieh  some  smart 
tradesman  corraled  during  the  summer  for  ju>t  such 
emei'gency  as  this  hiipj)ening  us;  yet  all  >ucli  relief  is 
small  in  possibilities  for  continuing  us  tlirough.  I'eojde 
are  training  to  two  meals  a  d;i>';  many  are  (levi^ing  ways 
and  means  for  going  out.  The  oulfltfini,''  eon-i>ts  in  a 
dog  team,  necessary  clothing,  and  blankets  and  grub  for 
meu  and  doiis  for  fortv  d.iv::-. 


11 

m 


I. 


!i 


I'll 


76 


THE  DECLINE  AND  FALL  OF 


UlilxVDKKK. 


The  reindc'CT  hoo])e(l  iij)  in  harness,  bunched  up,  bent 
m  its  strains  at  a  load,  and  driven  by  a  runty  little  i^ap- 
laiidcr,   presents  almost  a  comic  j)icturc.      Vet   its  ^reat 
good  j)oiiits  must  obscure  such  a  view  and  niake  us  aj)- 
plaud  its  nobility.     It   is  said  to  have  a  capacity  of   lUO 
pounds   per    100   miles  a   day   and  can   subsist   upon   the 
native  moss.     Oii  my  way  to  the  Klondike  I   interviewed 
Dr.  A.  N.  Kittle.son,  in  ehar;;e  of  the  United  States  gov- 
ernmoiit  I'eindeer  ranch  which   is  situatel  at  Unilucklick, 
on  the  coast  of   lichring  Sea,  (JO  miles  north  of  St.  Mi- 
chaels,     lie  gave   me  the   following  statistics:     The  herd 
consists  of  IjOOO  head  ;    about   100  are  or  can  be  fitted  for 
work;  some  are   being   worked,   others   are   awaiting   the 
op])ortunity ;  nnich  of  the  band  is  in   the  hands  of  tlie 
native  Indians  for  care — herding  and  training.     The  herd 
is  rajiidly    increasing.     On   our  expedition   to  tliese  gold 
fields  we  had  tlic  association  of  two  very  agreeable  gov- 
ernment  ollicials   sent    to   Alaska    as  emissaries  especially 
to  rc])ort   upon   its  conditions  and   its  f)ossibilities.     Tin; 
starvation  i)oint  of  the  Klondike  was  fairly  |)resented  to 
them  aiul  they  apj)reciated  the  situation  with  the  necessity 
for  relief,      llei'e   is  a   most  oj)portune  test  case  for  the 
reindeer,    1    argued,    but,    aig'ued    they:      "We    admit   the 
capaciy,  tlu^  utility  of  the  reindeer;  we  agree  that   noth- 
ing would   approach    it   as  the   riglit    thing   in   the   right 
place  and  that  hundreds  of  peoj)lc  might  be  saved  hun- 
ger, if  not  starvation;  yet   in   face  of  all  we  cannot  util- 
ize the  offering  at  pres(Mit.     In  the  first  place,  a  messen- 
ger  must    be    dispatched    to    Washijigton    for   authority; 
next,  the  aulhority  must  be  transmitted  to  th(*  ranch  on 
the   coast   of    Behring   Sea;    then    harness   must   be   fur- 
nished, the  deer  broken,  sleds  made.     All  this  will  be  a 


\ 


SAMUEL  SA  WBONES,  }L  D. 


77 


K  ,. 


year's  ontorprisc  for  the  (Idvcrninciit."  Poor  old  ship 
of  state,  lookiii;^'  down  at  part  of  its  own  crew  drowning. 
\\'li;il  a  iiaj)py  spectacle ! 

In  discussing'  the  same  coiiditioiis  as  a  privati^  enter- 
prise the  I'Dllowiii;;-  mil  line  w;;s  made  h_v  one  I'amiliar 
with  llie  .-urroundiii^^s:  '"1  could  reach  St.  Michaels  in 
a  i'ew  (lavs  via  one  of  these  river  hoats;  from  there,  by 
,-»)me  Indian  canoes.  1  could  within  a  week  be  at  work 
outfitting  on  \\\v  deer  ranch,  and  (piite  as  early  as  the 
ice  will  bear  be  on  my  way  to  ^'ukon  River  points  where 
are  large  stoi'ages  of  grub.  In  very  neai'ly  a  nu)ntli  from 
date  I  could  be  approaelung  l^awson  with  relief."  This 
was  no  fancy  picture,  but  ai  tual  computation  by  one  fa- 
miliar with  tlu'  country  and  the  climate.  Our  two  kid- 
glov(.'d  government  ollicials  no  doubt  will  report  the  feasi- 
bility of  this  plan  of  relief  next  sinnmer  and  receive  in- 
structions for  next  winter's  einer^vjicies. 


i 


GRI'BIUNC}. 


, 


"Sawbones,"  says  Captain  llealey,  numagcr  of  the  N. 
A.  T.  Company  at  Dawson,  "there  is  a  great  deal  of  sick- 
ness in  camp.     What  is  the  nuitter?" 

"No,  not  much — nothing  unusual." 

"No?  Well,  I  am  made  to  believe  there  is  a  big  lot 
ill.  Why,  every  man  who  comes  into  the  store  wants  a 
grub  stake  for  a  sick  broth'  r  or  a  sick  pard  who  could 
not  leave  his  bed  to  personally  apply  for  a  few  necessary 
supplies.  So  you  thiidv  it  is  not  serious — the  sickness, 
eh?  Yes,  1  see!  Any  scheme  to  get  an  extra  })ound  of 
pork  and  beans." 

The  store  is  continually  full  of  beggars,  and  such  beg- 
gars as  you  never  see  elsinvbere.  They  are  not  pau])ers. 
All  have  money  to  pay,  but   the  old  trading  c(nnpanies 


III 


(:l" 


78 


THE  1) FA' LINE  AND  FAlL  OF 


hold  fiist  to  tlicir  old  i)ri(cs  uiiilc  corner  priros  arc  way 
nj).  or  iIk.h'  hcif^iirs  (uic  class  arc  made  liars  liy  Tear 
ol'  slar^■in_l,^  and  any  resort  lliat  I'liniislies  something  to 
cat  ^^oes.  Another  lot  ai'c  such  as  have  plenty,  but  who 
strive  to  heat,  those  companies  out  ^){  ^M'uh  to  use  I'or 
speculation  on  the  side.  With  all  their  ell'orts  to  fill  oidy 
orders  for  such  who  niu,-t  aiid  ()u;;ht  to  l)e  served  they 
continually  are  ddiaudcil.  A  woman  with  children  will 
tie  thorn,  ra;,';x<'d  and  dirty,  to  her  apron-string  and  nuircli 
in  before  ('aptain  llealty  and  force  out  a  comhinntion  of 
tears  and  tales  of  woe;  if  her  hnshand  is  a  hetter  solicitor 
ho  lieads  the  |>!'oce,-sion.  Sonic  adcjds  at  dis;fuise  may 
appear  in  the  various  invalid  characlers  and  carry  on  a 
brisk  trade,  f')r  ('ai)tain  llcalcy  in  |)articnlar  cannot  look 
upon  sulVcrin;,^  if  he  can  mitiizate  it.  Captain  Hanson, 
nuitui<,M'r  (d'  the  A.  ('.  Company,  keeps  well  out  (»f  reacli 
of  tho  besio«Tin<;  mob,  and  Ihou^^h  he  has  sonu'  .u'entleinen 
about  him,  he  has  enough  loughs  in  waiting;  to  dis])osc 
of  those  whom  they  prefer  not   wait  in;::  uj)on. 

I  was  witness  to  the  followin;::  between  one  of  tlu>  trad- 
in^j^  companies  and  an  old-timer  who  caini'  after  his  win- 
tor's  ;rrub,  ordered  early  in  tho  season,  but  which  was 
only  filled  in  ])ai*t  as  per  scone: 

''I-'ifty   pounds   flour."     "Oh,   dear,   only   fifty  pounds 

for  the  blessed  Ion;? "    "Check.     Forty  pounds  bacon." 

"Why,  it  won't  last  mo  till  Thanks^rivinrr "     "diock. 

Twenty  pounds  beans."     "It  will  not  more  than  fill  my 

pot- "     "Chock.     One  box  herrino-."     "And  that  little 

box   won't  make  the  pa>i- 


Check.      One   hundred 
pounds  suij^ar.''     "Xow,  if  my  hatch  of  kids  were  u])  hero 

they    wo'.dd   oat    all     that     su^ijar "      "Check.      Fifty 

pounds  dried   apples,  "     "There's  some  business   in    that, 

for   they   will    kivp    one    filled    up    wliil(> "      "Chock. 

Now^  there;  handle  that  Hour  a  little  more  carefully. 


ly 


8Amvi:l  f^A  \vnosi:s,  m  d. 


TO 


Don't  yrrn  sco  my  lifo  nozo  on  I  of  tliaf  tnrasly  porous 
wick?  And  there,  (here  ^'oes  a  heaii  ;  pick  it  up.  That 
little  slnh-.'ided  picfc  of  hacoii — why,  it  dues  not  <'ven 
make  a  s^liadow.  ^'es,  ^Mve  me  that  red  prppcr.  I  jfot 
soiiii'  horse  meal  for  the  do^'s,  and  I  niav  have  In  \'nn\  the 
(loLj;s.  A  litth'  red  |)epper  (Hi  horse  meat  will  make  it  ^n) 
down  just  as  readily  as  meose  meal.  Then  la.-t  wiiitei', 
>vheii  n)y  pard  '^oi  ehised  in  on  Stewart  liivei-,  he  said 
I'ed  |)epper  made  liis  j)()(ir  iniisli,  his   Malamiilh,   his   hme 

partner,   as   much  a    relisji   as  eanne(|    roast    1 f  appears 

in  <\anip.  ^'os,  I  may  have  to  keep  the  wolf  away  fi'em 
(he  i\in\r  h\  virtue  oi'  this  red  pepper  and  my  poor  mnsh, 
t,iioii<,di  he  is  half  wolf.  Well'  in  the  stomueh  is  helter 
than  well'  in  tlie  door." 


i 


pnospKCTixr.. 


"Well,  Sanuu'l.  my  hey,  hack,  eh?  Strnek  anythin<; 
tills  trij)?  1  see  yen  had  a  new  pard.  ^'es,  quito  a 
stampede  from  the  j-'orks  over  to  Snli>lnir  yesterday.  A 
dollar  and  a  (pnirtt'r  lo  the  jian  was  repniird,  and  every 
availahle  man  and  \\i)man  ruslu'd  oH'  in  a  strn^^^de  for 
sonic  vaeani  (laim.  Sulphur  pnanises  to  he  a  di;,f^dngs 
that  will  riv;;!  I'lldorado  and  I>onan/a.  "^'es.  I  will  post 
yon  if  anyihini:'  v(M'y  hii^^  (teeurs.  Will  jiay  from  $100  to 
$1,000,  tieeordinir  in  Incalion." 

Dr.  Samuel  Sawhones  said  he  staked  on  a  ])up  of  Ophir 
Giileh,  hut  must  trust  to  luck  for  an  l"]Id(trado. 

"Yes,"  continued  the  doctor,  '"I  struck  a  new  j)ard. 
Yoii  know  the  cstahlished  law  ol'  tliis  land.  Any  and 
every  partnership  formed  upon  dunin*^  into  or  within 
the  houndary  of  Alas!:a  i'nv  the  pur)»ose  of  navi;:riiUon, 
tradiuf:^,  prospecting,  mining,  or  whatsoever,  invariahly 
and  universally  dissolves  by  mutual  consent  within  sixty 


} 


'i  \\ 


m 

M 


80 


37/a;  I)  EC  link  and  fall  of 


days  from  dale.  Well,  this  my  liot  partntT  was  n  gon- 
tU'iiiaii  from  a  ^^rcat  city  u1h»  hu  kid  on  to  me  I  know 
n(tl  rroiii  what  cause,  hul  I  tVli  the  iicepssity  of  dissolu- 
li(>n  and  at  thi;  same  time  hild  it  (hie  to  him  to  iiroeccd 
decently  and  in  order.  .My  invariahle  rule  to  hrcid;  the 
link  is  to  take  the  olFender  out  j»rosj)ectin^'.  Like  my 
eelehrated   liniment,    it    is    ne\er-^ailin;,^ 

''Well,  we  had  easy  sh-ddin^^  up  to  Forty  Four  I-'ddorado, 
^vhen  we  he;,'an  tiie  (rail  over  the  ran;;e.  This  is  two 
miles  to  the  ((tj),  with  a  \i,vm\v  oI!  nearly  ninety  de<(rees 
and  a  eorrespondin;^  slide  down  which  is  (piite  as  hiirdi'n- 
some.  \W\  had  outfitted  for  a  hi^^  route.  Down  ()|)hir 
12  miles  to  Indian  Kivci-,  down  Indian  iJO  miles  to  the 
Yukon,  down  ^'ukon  .'i")  mih's  home;  all  over  uid)roken 
trail,  (iruh  for  all  this  time.  cliaii,L!C  of  clothes  for  ac- 
cidents, lent,  stove,  j)icks.  .shovels,  axes,  etc.,  made  a 
sled-load  for  a  do,;^^  team,  hid  wo  tackled  it  all  the  .'-ame 
with  our  man  team.  Well,  my  ))ai'd  was  made  leader. 
Jle  forircd  ahead,  as  all  new  reci'uits  usually  do.  He 
pulled,  of  course;  finally  lie  la;^-^e(l  and  swore;  his  hreath 
came  fast  and  he  was  heyond  expressin<i;  himself;  his  eyes 
stuck  out — hun^  out.  No,  ndne  not  .<o  much  so.  Old 
soldiers  iie\er  do  the  work  (»f  raw  recruits.  His  ton<;ue 
shi'iveled  and  he  never  sj)okt!  nor  looked.  We  had  to 
du])licato  the  trip,  as  llie  load  was  too  heavy.  We  vir- 
tually fell  down  the  hill  on  the  other  side,  hut  the  snow 
was  too  deep  to  permit  of  any  injury  followinfj.  Of 
course  duplicatin<T  tho  trip  could  hy  no  means  duplicate! 
the  ^enileman's  temper — only  ])rolonLi;  it.  We  packed 
down  Iho  hill  rather  than  sledded,  and  when  one  of  us 
toppled  over  the  other  necessarily  needed  to  hel])  him 
on  his  feet  ajj^ain. 

"We  reached   the  rendezvous  late   in   Ihe  eveniuf?,  and 
I  left  nudcing  camp  to  pard.     The  stove  never  went  up, 


I 


J 


SAMUEL  SAWBONES,  Ml). 


81 


nnd  purposely  I  fiiiltd  Id  <iipply  Irnt-polcs.  We  slept 
f)Ut  ill  the  cold — only  iiUniit  M)  hdow.  We  weri'  not  i;i 
speaking  liiiiiioi-,  nor  did  we  do  any  ;,'rinnl)iin;j ;  in  fact, 
it  was  tn\irl)  of  a  pantDniimc.  My  pard  ilid  not  even 
coinplain  of  niy  biscuits,  tliou;,di  I  am  sure  1  made  tlicrn 
to  aid  the  cause. 

"Next  day  we  prospected  Opliir  Creek,  Imt  lindin;,'  it 
quite  completely  staked  wo  started  on  the  several  pups 
or  small  streams  emj)tyini;  into  it.  While  doim;  this  we 
learned  that  we  could  not  po>siljIy  reach  Indian  Itiver 
with  a  sled  loaded,  and  tlierelnic  mu.-t  return  as  we  had 
come.  I  could  see  T^di"  pictured  o!i  the  features  of  my 
piird,  and  indeed  hid'ore  the  scene  was  closed  it  was  fairly 
seen  upon  my  own.  1  rcLM'etled  the  loss  of  the  lirst- 
plaiiiied  route,  as  it  was  j)ossihle  we  mi.i,dit  run  upon  a 
moose,  than  which  nothin<;  more  a,i,M'eeahle  could  liap|>eii. 
Wo  hoped,  too,  to  lish  in  Indian  K'ixcr,  and  hein^  lim- 
ited closely  the  whole  winter  to  salt  meats,  these  fresh 
oiu's  would  have  been  oll'erin;4S  worthy  most  (levoi;t  thanks. 
1  need  iu)t  |  '  ture  the  return.  ^Mmost  the  di.y  was  ex- 
hausted crossiiiL,'  the  ran^^e,  and  1  am  (juite  sure  our  com- 
bined stren<;tlis,  with  our  cond)ined  patiences  aiul  our 
individual  vii'tues,  were  all  f,n)ni',  all  worn  out  or  destroyed. 
It  was  a  cure-all,  hut  at  <;reater  expense  than  J  had  bar- 
<>'ained  for.  Pard  never  resented  and  kept  the  lead,  but 
I  could  see  he  had  enough  of  your  humble  servant,  lie 
was  cold  and  1  did  not  care  to  brini,^  on  reaction.  You 
know  your  cars  may  become  frosted,  aiul  rubbing  them 
well  with  snow  brings  on  reaction,  and  how  they  burn! 
I  wished  to  avoid  a  reaction  in  pard,  for  oh,  how  hot  it 
might  have  ))een  I  I  hail  not  counted  ujjon  this  over- 
work as  my  medicine.  My  ollico  of  cook  is  the  one  in 
which  I  work  my  charm.  After  a  hard  day,  if  I  served 
a  hard  bcau^  underdone  bacon,  and  weak  coiluc,  and  spice 


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Photographic 

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Corporation 


23  WEST  MAIN  STREET 

WEBSTER,  NY.  14580 

(716)  872-4503 


^^^ 


<^^<^ 


I   1 


89 


THE  DECLINE  AND  FALL  OF 


m 


( 1 
*. 


them  with  plenty  of  ugly  back  talk,  I  can  lonipt  the 
devil  to  creep  out  of  almost  any  subject.  The  overwork 
on  this  trip  was  good  (you  know  each  doctor  may  have  a 
different  medicine,  all  good)  but  it  reacted  upon  me  too 
severely. 

"We  staked  claims,  and  did  wo  find  gold?  No.  Who 
ever  presumed  to  stop  there  a  montli  and  dig  to  bed 
rock  to  prove  up  to  the  recorder  that  the  claims  were 
gold-bearing?  Why,  when  you  stake  a  ))roniising  claim 
you  must  run  home  by  relays  to  record  it  or  some  otlicr 
fellow,  possibly  the  one  just  ahead  of  you  in  the  line 
where  you  stand  three  days  before  the  recorder's  olliic, 
will  have  your  number  and  descri])tion  in  his  pocket  and 
records  it  before  vour  eves. 

"Yes,  the  claims  we  staked  were  within  the  Eldorado 
possibilities,  only  a  few  miles  over  the  range,  and  will 
seM  to  outsiders  by  virtue  of  the  association.  And,  too, 
they  may  prove  'way-up  paying  claims.'* 

The  foregoing  narrative  of  Samuel  Sawbones  covers 
the  proceed'ngs  for  prospecting  in  Alaska  in  many  of  its 
features.  The  anticipated  prospecting  tour  is  planned 
in  accordance  with  the  distance  and  the  country.  One 
may  have  a  dog  or  a  team  of  d<igs  to  transport  his  grub, 
but  we  nnist  recollect  that  the  dogs  must  be  fed  from  the 
freight,  therefore  the  gain  is  not  absolute.  Some  husky 
prospector  may  carry  seventy-five  pounds  of  substantial 
grub  o(T  into  the  wilderness  upon  '^hich  ho  can  prospect 
one  or  several  months.  If  simply  on  a  tour  of  location 
he  can  go  the  limits  of  all  the  present  known  creeks  in 
the  Klondike  district.  Then  if  he  has  found  gold  he 
proceeds  to  duplicate  a  pack  of  grub  two  or  more  times 
until  a  supply  for  a  season  accumulates.  It  used  to  be 
in  Alaska  that  miners  worked  exclusively  bar  claims  on 
the  larger  streams.    They  would  carry  the  supply  of  grub 


I 


SAMUEL  SA  WBONES,  M.  D. 


83 


in  winter  with  dogs,  would  clean  up  at  the  end  of  sum- 
mer, and  remain  in  town  the  winter  except  the  time  to 
regruh  the  claim.  With  the  present  excitement  and  the 
change  in  the  location  of  gold  matters  are  much  dif- 
ferent. Stanij)edes  germinate,  as  it  were.  For  instance, 
Ophir  was  jirospccted  in  the  summer  season  and  aban- 
doned, 'i'wo  weeks  ago  a  party  ol"  several  crossed  owv  lo 
Ophir,  dug  something  of  a  hole,  and  called  it  Discovery; 
they  staked  u])  and  down  and  returned  to  record.  In 
another  day  a  little  larger  crowd  crossed  to  Ophir  and 
located.  Kach  day  a  little  larger  jKirty  took  the  trail 
now  fairly  broken  to  Ophir  until  at  present  each  and 
every  claim  on  the  gulch  is  staked.  I']ach  and  all  of  these 
staked  because  others  before  them  went  there  and  located. 
Xo  gold  in  paying  qnantity  has  yet  been  found.  Many 
only  stake  and  do  not  pay  the  $1.5  to  record,  but  they 
■jkc  ^U  '"hances  of  some  one  else  recording  it. 

iJEFLECTlONS    I'N'UKR   THE   AUIIOHA. 


■t 


■J 


■ 


This  morning  my  hot  cakes  carried  the  mess  by  ac- 
clamation. They  were  all  eaten,  hut  rcfpiiring  a  "sop" 
the  unusual  bacon  frying  was  used.  This  robbed  the 
"widow"  of  its  midnight  oil.  Xo  noon  meal  in  view  and 
no  supply  for  the  widow!  But  our  evening  meal — the 
enticing  hot  cakes  did  not  kill,  but  threatened,  and  the 
usual  supper  was  abandcmed  for  a  sim))le  tea.  What  fol- 
lows? Why,  total  darkness.  The  aurora  borealis  plays 
freaks  and  fancies  in  the  heavens,  and  it  alone  must 
guide  us  through  the  night.  One  of  the  moss  confi'ssed 
to  two  inches  of  tallow  dip,  but  "will  be  darned  if  he  is 
going  to  waste  it."  Candles  are  down  to  (iO  cents  ])i'r 
box,  but  we  need  a  score  of  iK^essiiries — mitts  to  wood 
with,  a  pan  to  wash  in   (both  faces  and  pots  at  present 


fc»  • 


Ff 


84 


THE  DECLINE  AND  FALL  OF 


ci 


\\       Ji 


are  washed  in  tho  golfl-pnn  wo  hrou^^ht  to  clean  up  our 
fortune  in),  a  lirooiii  for  hou.-scck'aiiing — and  the  candles 
must  be  forgotten. 

Under  the  aurora  we  go  to  cogitating  and  ponietimes 
moralizing.  If  only  that  X.  A.  ''.\  Company  had  given  us 
a  can  of  lard,  how  we  would  hug  it,  even  with  our  best 
clothes  on ! 

Brother  Young's  mission  church  burned  down  last  night, 
and  the  only  fire  brigade  is  the  curious  crowd  with  snow- 
balls. All  wo  could  do  was  to  throw  snowballs  on  the 
adjoining  cabins.  Buckets,  yes,  but  the  water  might  freeze 
in  the  buckets  while  carrying  it  from  the  little  holes 
down  in  the  ice.  Nine  men  who  had  put  their  faith  and 
grub  in  Brother  Young's  tabernacle  have  only  their  faith 
left,  and  I  fear  it  will  not  keep  off  the  scurvy  the  coming 
winter.  Down  in  Montana  I  observed  tho  I^ord  did  not 
always  "temper  the  winds  to  the  shorn  lamb,"  and  I 
fear  as  well  for  the  probal)ilitics  in  this  country. 

In  a  few  days  our  neighbors  will  bo  going  "outside." 
In  fact,  a  hundred  poor  souls  are  reported  waiting  for 
the  first  substantial  trail  up  the  Yukon  to  tlio  lakes  and 
the  coast.  Our  neighbors  with  seven  dogs  promise  a  rapid 
trip,  thirty  days  or  less.  Usually  three  dogs  constitute 
the  team  for  three  men,  whoso  outfit  and  grul)  and  blankets 
weigli  I'vT)  pounds  to  the  man.  Tho  dogs'  own  feed  added 
makes  as  much  as  tho  team  can  pull,  leaving  tho  men  to 
walk  or  run,  which  is  understood  even  after  paying  the 
present  exacted  price  of  $300. 

What,  our  quondam  landlord  in  jail,  he  and  two  oth- 
ers? Yes,  Curley  Redd  and  tho  bartender  and  a  pard  de- 
liberately pushed  in  tho  front  door  after  business  hours, 
carried  off  tho  wooden  boxes  in  which  was  stored  $31,000, 
and,  like  asses  (oxen),  began  immediately  to  spend  it, 
without  the  least  security  or  secrecy.    Why,  of  course  the 


SAMUEL  SAWBONES,  M.  D. 


85 


mounted  polico — anybody  rould — dotcrtod  them  .and  con- 
fession was  a  natural  courx'.  .Mo.-l  of  the  nioiiev  came 
hack.  The  penalty?  Karly  in  the  reason  the  crinuiials 
were  put  aHoat  in  a  boat  on  the  Yukon  and  sent  down  to 
American  territory.  1  do  not  know  what  may  be  done 
with  them,  as  ihc  big,  fat,  husky  police  will  not  want  to 
share  their  scant  grub  with  the  criminals.  There  are 
more  thieves,  cut-throats,  and  vagabonds  in  this  caiii])  al- 
ready than  could  have  in  the  early  days  in  America  Ik^'H 
screened  from  all  the  mining  camp<  combined,  and  tiiere 
will  bo  no  abatement  until  something  better  than  the  pres- 
ent government  f<dlowp.  Mr.  Curley  IuhM  rented  to  us 
our  present  cabin.  A  few  days  later  the  real  owner  came 
along  an<l  collected  a  second  r<Mit.  One  wovk  ago  I 
bought  a  boat  on  tiie  river  ice.  Next  day  1  went  down  to 
dismendjer  mv  boat  and  carrv  it  home:  onlv  the  bottom 
was  left.  Yesterday  pard  bought  a  tent  standing  across 
the  way  from  some  young  gentlemen  of  Seattle  who  had 
accumulated  a  team  of  dogs  and  are  ready  to  go  outside. 
To-day  a  man  came  to  light  who  loaned  to  these  preco- 
cious youths  of  Seattle  the  tent,  and  is  preempting  said 
tent  regardless  of  our  claim.  To-day  we  look  about  for 
our  sled.  The  sled  is  the  market-basket  here,  its  sub- 
stitute for  the  good  housewife's  market-basket  at  home, 
yet  much  more  than  this.  Every  well-regulated  family 
must  have  a  sled.  Every  sled  is  alike.  They  cost  at 
home  market  $10;  here  they  arc  worth  to-day  $40  to  $r)0. 
We  must  have  one  to  bring  in  wood;  for  carrying  our 
grub  stake  h.onie  or  carrying  outfits  (o  the  mines;  for  the 
children  to  play  with;  for  one  to  take  his  best  girl  out 
in.  Our  sled  is  gone,  stolen  or  astray,  and  we  must  carry 
our  wood  upon  our  backs.  Always  o".e  <  f  a  mess  must  re- 
main at  home  to  prot(>ct  it.  A.-ld.^  from  the  loss,  the 
moral  effect  of  all  this  depravily  is  damnable.     To-mor- 


f 


y 


!' 


■41 


^ 


86 


THE  DECLINE  AND  FALL  OF 


row  all  the  megs  will  bo  prowling  about  peering  in  here, 
there  and  evcrywliere,  looking  for  an  e(iually  good  sled 
thiit  can  Iio  spirited  nway  as  was  ours. 

Samuel  Sawbones  ajipoars  in  the  shadow. 

"Come  in,  doctor.  We  want  you  to  arbitrate  a  ease 
for  us.  A  in  our  mess  says  he  will  not  be  danii)liooi 
enough  to  chip  in  for  a  sixty-dollar  box  of  caiulles,  wiiil.' 
B  says:  *\Vail.  When  randies  arc  $r^0  a  bcv  I  shall 
write  to  the  girl  1  U'ft  behind  and  say  I  am  burning 
candles  at  $120  j)cr  box  at  your  shrine,  and  1  hope  you 
will  ajipreciatc  my  devotion  and  sacrifices.'  Which  do 
you  commend  ?" 

Sawbones  delights  most  in  his  own  experiences  in  Alaska 
of  the  past  years,  lie  assures  us  on  the  starvation  point 
by  telling  how  it  might  be  worse,  lie  related  a  thrilling 
incident  where  a  jjoor  but  proud  |)rosp('ct()r  stole  the  wall- 
paper off  his  ollice  wall  Just  to  make  soup  from  the  flour 
paste  that  was  used;  then,  in  the  agony  of  arsenic-poi- 
soning from  the  green  paper,  he  sent  for  the  doctor  and 
confessed  to  the  fault.  1  will  not,  however,  vouch  for 
everything  Samuel  Sawbones  tells. 

"liy  the  way.  Dr.  Sawbones,  what  is  the  aurora  bo- 
real is?" 

"What?  Why,  only  the  X-rays  from  the  Arctic  Ocean. 
The  light,  the  rays  of  the  Oriental  sun,  strikes  the  ice- 
bergs of  the  nortliern  sea;  these  serve  as  the  tubes,  as  it 
M'cre;  they  divert  the  rays,  intensify  them,  magnify  and 
multiply  them,  and  the  rays  so  generated,  the  X-rays  as 
they  are,  pierce  the  heavens  and  make  themsolvos  scon 
and  even  felt  throughout  the  heavens.  Along  with  tho 
rapid  play  of  colors  and  transposition  of  scenes  observed 
in  the  States,  here  we  have  fantastic  leaps  and  flashes, 
sheets  of  rainbow  brilliaru-y  droi)iiing  down  to  the  earth; 
with  strange  crackling,  electric  noises  so  nearly  overhead 


SAMUEL  SA  WBONKS,  M.  D. 


nr 


as  to  make  us  stop  asunder.  No,  1  caiinot  formulate  you 
this  theory  in  seieiitilie  huigiiage,  hut  you  need  bo  satislied 
with  the  roasonin^x." 


i 


HKFI-KrTION'S  AT  h'V   HKLOW. 


bo- 


It  is  fjonerally  reeo<,Miized  that  one  eahunity  is  always 
followed  hy  a  second.  One  lire  of  a  week  a^o  sure  enough 
is  followed  hv  a  much  worse  one.  Ami  all  we  could  do, 
as  on  the  former  occasion,  was  to  throw  snowballs.  My 
neighbor  declared  to  me  that  filling  his  water  bucket  at 
the  river  wells  this  morning,  he  found  ujjon  arriving  in 
his  cabin  a  fairly  solid  ice  frozen  over  it.  A  iire-engine 
at  this  temperature  might  get  a  stn^am  of  water  started, 
but  I  can  inuigiiie  nothing  but  icicles  would  reach  the 
roofs  of  the  buildings.  Several  of  the  best  buildings  in 
Dawson  burned  last  night.  One,  a  fairly  well-equipped 
theater,  is  a  distressing  loss.  The  lire  was  limited  by 
a  vacant  lot  and  by  green  log  cabins.  Of  course  there 
is  no  whimju'ring  or  crying  here  over  misfortune,  as  for- 
tune is  su})i)osed  or  expected  to  go  hand  in  hand  with  it. 
A  simple  strike  on  Stookum  Jim  (Julch  can  correct  the 
accident  as  shortly  as  it  was  created. 

And  will  people  freeze?  Xo,  none  except,  as  Samuel 
Sawbones  would  put  it,  damphools.  A  man  who  goes  out 
pros])ecting  or  traveling  in  this  temperature  without 
matches  and  without  sense  enough  to  build  a  fire  before 
he  is  frozen  too  stilF  to  light  a  nuitch  may  freeze  sure 
enough.  One  soon  learns  hero  to  prnvi(l(>  fi)r  a  rainy  day. 
He  will  koej)  his  stovo  banked  up  with  wood,  and  a  little 
breastwork  of  ice  before  his  door  for  emergencies  of  70° 
or  80°  below.  He  will  economize  likewise  in  wasliing  his 
face  and  dishes.  He  who  is  out  every  day  grows  tough  and 
can  sleep  up  in  the  ranges  with  good  robe  covers  in  a 


5l 


88 


THE  DECLINE  AND  FALL  OF 


brush  tont,  and  not  run  tho  risk  of  freezing.  A  dog 
^'niiislicr"  tells  mo  he  would  not  ho  oojixcd  to  sleep  any- 
\,\\v\'v  \)\\\  in  a  tent  piled  up  with  liis  dogs. 

'I  Ik.to  are  three  horses  in  town  which  conimnnd  $10 
])('r  hour,  hut  tho  owner  says  to-day:  "I  will  not  leave 
thcui  go  out."  It  seems  even  poor  frail  man  either  has 
more  en<luranco  or  ventures  more  than  is  safe  to  risk  in 
the  horse.  These  liorses  have  a  hay  supply,  but  they  eat 
cornmeal  and  Hour  and  other  truck  wo  men  would  fain 
cache  for  tho  spring-time.  Maybe  nothing  will  be  lost 
to  us,  for  we  may  have  tlur  o])})oitunity  to  eat  the  liorses. 

Wood  has  an  upward  tendency;  $.'K)  to  .$-10  per  cord; 
$10  is  the  penalty  for  having  a  cord  cut  into  stove  wood. 
Oh!  oh!  oh!  How  it  does  rasp  one's  bronchial  tubes  to 
bend  over  a  buck-saw  this  cold  snap  and  make  his  break- 
fast wood. 

A  character  on  the  street  and  in  the  prominent  saloons 
up  to  the  present  time  was  a  "Jenny"  brought  up  from 
the  states  by  some  lubber  of  a  man  and  abandoned  when 
feed  got  scarce;.  Jenny  would  edge  into  these  warm 
places  with  the  steady  crowds,  and  1  tliink  at  no  one  place 
was  it  ever  kicked  out.  It  had  innumerable  scars  over 
its  hams  from  lioofing  quite  too  close  to  the  stove.  Out 
in  the  street  it  seemed  to  serve  no  better  purpose  than  a 
whetstone  to  sb.arpen  the  teeth  of  tlie  Eskimo  dogs.  To- 
day our  old  associate  is  the  center  of  a  howling  mass  of 
these  dogs,  but  its  natural  toughness  and  the  solid  frozen 
mass  from  the  cold  disappoints  the  herd  of  scavengers. 
Poor  Jenny !  Some  day  there  will  drop  into  your  jack- 
ass heaven  something  in  the  sliape  of  a  man,  your  late 
owner,  the  wretch  who  brought  you  up  to  this  cold,  cold 
country  and  left  you  without  food  and  without  shelter, 
who  left  you  to  eat  mucklucks,  to  freeze  out  in  the  street, 
or  exhaust  your  gall  by  holding  first  place  around  the 


SAMUEL  RAWnONKS.  M.J). 


80 


saloon  stoves.     Tic  it?  so  mucli  biggor  ass  than  you  that 
you  can  afTord  to  forgive  him. 

Oh,  nu'!  but  it  is  gcKing  colder,  and  Ihoy  pay  it  will 
bo  00°  bi'low  to-night!  What  shall  we  do  to  be  saved  — 
saved  from  freezing?  1  eaii  add  to  my  bed  my  hulVah) 
coat;  tliis  button  mai<es  a  sh'ej)iiig-l)ag;  then  I  sliall  keep" 
on  my  (lerman  soeks  and  my  llaiinels.  in  addition  to  my 
blankets  my  canvas  cover  must  go  over  all — over  my 
head  to  keep  the  warm  air  in  and  tiie  frost  oul.  r)ad  air, 
eh?  Olt,  that  does  not  count  here.  All  frei^diters  crawl 
into  tileeping-bags  and  tie  themselves  shut.  Indians  cover 
themselves  compielely  under  skins.  Tiie  native  dogs  lie 
anywhere  and  everywhere,  a])])arently  a  big  roll  of  fur, 
their  noses,  eyes,  and  ears  stuck  under  them  in  some  man- 
ner with  no  pretensions  to  breathing  fnsli  air.  We  can 
live  h 


vc  Here  tlirougn  tlio  winter  witiiout  any  demand  on  iresn 
air.  Fresii-air  craid^s  would  die  here.  It  is  a  custom 
with  several  tribes  of  Indians  down  the  river  upon  occa- 
sions of  scarcity  of  food  to  retire  into  an  underground 
abode  called  (I  forget  the  nanu^)  and  take  a  sitting  pos- 
ture, close  up  the  place  quite  tight,  keep  it  hot,  and  re- 
main there  until  spring  opens  up,  neither  getting  fresh 
air  nor  exercise,  and  having  their  food  supply  cut  downi 
to  the  meanest  possible  amount  once  daily,  which  is  sup- 
plied them  by  the  squaws  who  remain  to  regulate  outside 
affairs.  They  are  strict  to  remain  away  from  all  family 
ties.  And  yet  they  pan  out  all  right  with  the  spring 
tide.     Bad  air  does  not  kill  them. 

ROGKRS. 


\\ 


the 


One  Rogers,  a  stray  from  a  BriHsh  whale-boat  in 
Behring  Sea,  was  taken  kindly  to  by  the  humanitarian 
element  of  St.  Michaels  and  outfitted  with  old  clothes  and 


"«j 


rrr 


90 


THE  1>ECIASE  AND  FALL  OF 


puoh  luxuries  as  faco  ono  proj<v'(in^  a  sojourn  on  the 
KloTidikc.  As  roustalxMil,  assistant  cook  and  valet,  he 
V'-rked  his  way  with  the  fiTcinost  of  es  up  to  I'urt  ^'llkon. 
By  tliis  tinio  ho  luid  not  only  attained  an  iiidepetuh'nec, 
!)Ut  also  tile  enviahle  reputation  of  a  ^'ood  fi'llow  of  thrifty 
nttitu<le  and  open  haiul  and  heart.  1  myself  there  had 
the  pleasure  of  takin;^  a  little  ^'in-nnd-water  at  his  hoard. 
Of  cimrso  lio^^^-rs  was  the  first  olT  the  panixplr/'k  at  Daw- 
Bon.  Wc  were,  liowever,  surprised,  even  lionilied,  to  be 
fiuninioned  heforo  his  cxeellenry  the  captain  of  the  North- 
west Mounted  Police  to  testify  ns  to  I\o^'ers'  <,'ood  char- 
aeter.  (Jilvery,  of  the  Xew  York  llordUl,  upon  being 
dumped  (»ir  the  l)oat — kicked  off,  as  it  wore — on  the  bleak 
and  loiu'Iy  banks  at  Fort  Yukon,  remained  only  long 
enough  to  damn  the  temerity  aiul  ineHic  iency  of  the  river 
captains  and  the  tradini:^  companies'  negligc^nee.  Then 
he  gathered  sevej-al  Indians  and  hied  him  on  and  up  to- 
ward the  gold  fields,  leaving  the  mass  of  us  to  weep  in 
our  desolation.  The  mighty  strides  of  (iilvery  on  his 
tramp  up  the  hanks  of  the  Yukon,  and  the  long,  tough 
pull  nuulo  by  him  landed  him  many  days  ahead  of  us, 
but  landed  him  virtually  barefooted.  Only  a  few  days 
up  and  down  the  streets  of  Dawson  over  the  sharp  edges 
and  ragged  surfaces  of  the  nuggets  with  which  they  are 
paved  made  him  absolutely  so.  Now,  it  was  not  passing 
strange  at  all  that  upon  the  arrival  of  our  boat  at  the 
dock  the  enterprising,  rustling,  galloping  reporter  of  the 
live  New  York  Herald  should  bo  there  looking  for  us. 
We  were  expecting  him,  and  indeed  the  fog-horn  of  our 
old  scow  had  awakened  him  from  his  golden  dreams  and 
warned  him  of  his  post  of  duty,  and  he  was  there,  but 
with  his  eyes  riveted  upon  the  corns  and  bruises  upon  his 
pattering  feet  rather  than  directed  to  his  old  pards. 
Thus  interested  in  the  footlights  of  the  occasion  lie 


SAMCKL  SAWBONES,   M.  D. 


9i 


made  ii  hit.  Ho^'crs,  ahvnvs  (irst  »iii  lioat  iiiul  first  on 
shore,  utrucix  the  Klniidikr  at  the  same  time  as  our  c.-r. 
ruspondiMit,  with  a  pair  of  fni',  hi','h-st('|»piii;4  hoots.  Said 
hoots  had  iiiddihly  pcinilid  iiir-idf  the  h';,'s  the  iiani;'. 
tho  |)hi(«',  of  (lilvcrv,  of  the  N'lU  Voik  JhruhL  Hi-! 
riglit,  titU'  aiid  (■.\<!ii>i\o  ov  luri-hip  was  vc.-tid  in  h'o;^«'r>' 
very  firsL  step  to  fortiii'.i'.  At  I  lie  trial  it  wa-  (I.Mlopcd 
that  Ko^crs,  after  cli'ariii;:  the  hoat  at  liif  (U.-toin-hoiisc, 
was  the  proj)rii't()r  n{  thrrr  diU'crcut  cucins,  in  all  a;:,u'i'»'- 
gatin^  3,(100  j)ouiids  of  iiii.-ccHaiM'oiis  toothsome  hixiirifs, 
hcsides  liilvcry's  hoots,  which  he  (iichril  at  I'ort  Vukou 
previous  to  tlu'  llight  aforenu'iitioiit'(L  Wv.  rdatr  this  in- 
cident not  to  ahuse  (iilvery,  who  is  a  Welshman,  or 
Rogers,  wlio  is  a  tiiief,  hut  to  illustrate  what  a  young, 
active,  enterprising  young  nam  may  aeeomplish  in  a  short 
season  in  Alaska,  where  the  vigilantes  liave  not  yet  eropped 
out.  Yes,  l{ogers  was  convicted.  His  worship,  the  caplain 
of  the  Northwest  Mounted  Police,  acting  justice  of  the 
peace,  decreed  in  suhstanee  as  follows:  "Her  nuijesty's 
larder  heing  vei*}'  h)w,  while  we  have  not  yet  comjileted 
tlio  hardwood  finish  on  our  jail,  I  therefore  command 
that  tlie  ])ris()ner  llogers  he  and  herehy  is  ordi'red  ahoard 
a  river  hoat  commonly  called  a  skill',  and  that  lie  l»e  set 
adrift  with  the  current  of  the  Yukon  and  cautioned  to 
continue  said  course  until  faithfully  and  fairly  within 
the  hounds  and  jurisdiction  of  the  government  of  the 
United  States  of  America.'* 


^ 


EDMUNDS,  OF  VIRGINIA. 


Edmunds,  of  Virginia,  is  no  fool ;  ho  is  no  wit.  Physic- 
ally Edmunds  is  prominent;  mentally  ho  is  promising. 
He  first  showed  up  on  the  Skagway  Pass,  where  ho 
earned  from  $20  per  day  up  packing.    lie  had  come  from 


I   \ 


02 


TUB  DKCLINK  AND  FALL  OF 


old  Vir^'inia,  wlicro  ln>  liml  Urn  u  student  ill  Lincoln 
C.'.jlk';^o  and  was  doiii^  ucll  until  the  wnw  of  prosjuTity 
:'rij<k  liiin.  Dunn;,'  the  I'lrsidential  caniiiai^^'n  Im»iU 
;  itrdt'S  ])roniis('(l  tiitir  supporters  a  wave  of  jtrosperity. 
i  ho  sucee.ssful  party  was  as  ^'ood  as  iU  word  and  ininiu- 
diatily  its  wave  set  alloat. 

rirst,  the  great  wave  kiu)eked  silver  off  its  pereli ;  tlien, 
Bweeping  on,  every  institution,  every  business,  every  en- 
terprise not  fort  Hied  Ity  trusts,  bonds  or  ninnopoly,  waa 
knoeked  off  its  foundation.  The  wave  of  prosperity  is 
still  abroad,  and  not  a  poor  soul  dares  venture  ft)rth  with 
his  j)altry  dollar  lest  it  be  engulfed.  iMlniunds,  of  Vir- 
ginia, not  being  u  union  man  of  any  sort  by  which  he 
eould  draw  support,  aii<l  having  no  stock  in  any  trust 
or  nionojmly  through  which  he  could  sit  and  ride  upon 
this  great  wave  of  prosperity,  found  himself  sidrift,  lloat- 
ing  with  the  many  millions  of  his  co-humanity  to  whither 
unknown,  lie  chanced  upon  the  Klondike  trail,  lie  was 
a  pack-mule;  not  that  there  was  any  mule  about  him, 
but  because  he  packed  the  average  load  of  a  mule  and 
was  earning  as  much  as  a  ])ack-nmle. 

Edmunds  by  chance  camped  on  the  trail  of  two  young 
men  of  Seattle,  both  delirious  with  tlio  Klondike  fever, 
both  fresh  from — one  his  mother,  the  otlier  a  young  wife. 
They  elicited  his  sympathy  aiul  engaged  him  first  as  nurse, 
later  as  general  matron.  In  the  fuUiu'ss  of  their  hearts 
lliey  divided  their  worldly  goods  into  three  parts,  one 
of  which  they  donated  to  Edmunds,  now  their  caj)tain. 

Windy  Arm!  Oh,  Windy  Arm!  (Quailing  hearts  and 
weak  knees  are  thine.  The  terror  of  cheechokers,  yet  the 
bone  doctor  for  the  KlondiKc  fever.  Scores  of  cures  canst 
thou  boast!  Three  days  and  three  nights  \v(>re  I']dmunds 
and  his  two  patrons  stranded  upon  one  of  tlu'  numerous 
islands  of  Windy  Arm.    The  wind  seems  never  to  fail 


8AMUKL  a  A  WnONKS,  M,  D. 


03 


ifc. 
irsc, 
arts 
one 
11  in. 
(1 

tllG 

nst 
•oils 


there.  Mdinunds  tricil  to  du'cr  up  hy  whisllin;*  when  lii.-t 
two  eompaiUDiis  waitt'tl  upon  him  witli  this:  "Voii  kiii>\v, 
Hiilors  alwuvf*  wliistlf  when  hioilmcil  for  the  ^jods  of  ihi; 
sea  to  send  them  wIikK"  I'ldiiiiinds  ohcycd  tlicir  wish,  l.iit 
."•till  it  hk'w.  .\s  a  choice  of  two  evils — that  of  ln-in;; 
driven  crazy  <>m  this  .-aiidy  har  or  h«'in;,'  hroken  to  pieces 
on  tlio  rocky  >hoic— the  two  cheeehokcrs  of  Seat  I  h'  made 
each  his  will  iii  favor  of  their  old  nur>e  and  partner, 
and  conunendin^  theni.'clves  to  his  care  chanced  their 
escape  to  shore.  .No  sooner  struck  than  hoih  stampeded 
rapidly  on  the  hack  track  home,  Mdmunds  rcniaitied  a 
lone  mariner,  lie  trusted  himself  to  the  mercies  id'  Windy 
Ann.  The  first  day  his  nuist  went  overboard,  and  he, 
helpless,  camped  li^rht  in  the  trou;:h  of  hear  tracks  into 
wliich  he  was  cast.  He  says:  "With  all  the  truns  and 
pistols  and  knives  of  my  late  companions  to  fortify  me 
1  did  not  sleep  that  ni<,dit."'  Next  day  ho  broke  his 
nuhler,  when  he  says  he  prayed  a  little,  and  reached  shore 
in  safety.  He  wished  he  had  not  let  ^'o  of  his  late  com- 
panions, for  he  thou^dit  the  l)ottoin  of  the  lake  would  not 
bo  so  cold  if  lyin;,'  there  all  three  instead  of  his  lone  self. 
However,  he  confronted  all  dan;,'ers  and  defeated  them. 
He  Inid  reached  the  canyon  bt'low  all  the  lakes  and  was 
whistling'  through  sheer  good  humor  at  his  own  success, 
when,  as  he  says,  he  was  mortified  at  six  guns  pointed 
at  him  and  each  with  a  man  hi'hind,  lie  let  his  hands 
liave  their  way  and  their  way  was  uj).  Kxplainitions  fol- 
lowed. His  two  pards,  footsore  and  hungry,  in  their  raj)id 
back  action  became  mendicants,  and  in  the  weakness  of 
their  miseries  they  forgo!  facts  and  dctaih'il  a  history 
of  ])iracy  on  the  liigh  seas  which  is  ileath — as  l-Mmunds 
almost  experienced.  ]iut  our  skipper  escaped  the  forearm 
of  his  craft  and  lives  to  hang  in  a  better  cause.  I'-rieiids 
happened  to  follow  down  the  trail  (he  had  friends  wher- 


i 


[.^ 


i\ 


p^^p 


}'i 

If 

t       M^ 

^ 

'^ 

'4 

1 

\ 

1 
t 
1 

9i 


THE  DECLINE  AND  FALL  OF 


over  ho  liad  af'fjua:'«.t!incc.s),  and  tlioy  vouched  for  his  tale 
of  woes  versus  the  talc  of  the  two  kids  of  Seattle.  Then 
this  Vir<,nnia  coon,  harely  escaped  from  heing  skinned 
and  harhecncd,  sail(Ml  down  through  White  Horn  Kapids, 
whistling  "Dixie,"  with  his  heaviest  sails  ailoat,  and  landed 
in  !^'  4her  week  at  l.ouistown,  the  other  shore  of  Dawson, 
with  y,()()()  pounds  of  gruh  of  the  actual  value  of  '$'^,()<)0. 
He  proposes  staying  with  us  a  year  and  hopes  to  replace 
this  gruh  varlic  with  the  same  weight  of  gold-dust  and 
nuggets  and  hie  him  baek  to  old  Virginia. 


GAMHLIX(}    IN'    DAWSOX. 


Passing  an  idle  hour  in  the  ^liners'  Home  poking 
about  from  faro  table  to  poker  game,  1  was  arrested  by 
a  peculiar  spilling  noise  something  of  the  manner  1  have 
heard  from  the  ri])ping  of  a  farmer's  grain  bag  and  the 
spilling  of  his  wheat.  This  was  a  sharper  click,  liow- 
ever,  a  metallic  ring  wiiieh  wheat  at  50  cents  per  bushel 
never  possessed.  Claimant  of  Xo.  "  Eldorado  had  bursted 
his  sack  of  dust.  The  fire  shovel  and  broom  were  brought 
into  requisition  and  a  hasty  clean-up  made  of  what  was 
in  sight.  The  claimant  of  Xo.  7  said:  "Come  and  drink, 
everybody — ccmie  aiul  drink!"  Sometimes  the  Miners' 
Home  has  a  hundred  patrons,  hut  Xo.  7  ]']ldorado  was 
game  and  did  not  quail  ht^fore  this  nuinher,  even  if  the 
drinks  are  50  cents  each.  Then  Xo,  7,  always  a  high- 
ste])])er  with  several  drinks,  deposited  the  remains  of  his 
sack  in  the  faro  dealer's  hox.  Of  course,  once  there  it 
is  a  time  dc])osit. 

This  is  pre[)aratory  to  n  discussion  of  gam])li ng  in  the 
Klondike.  A  dealer  with  whom  I  am  in  touch  confides 
to  me  that  his  house  cleans  up  nightly  about  '$-3,000. 
Of  this  sum  a  share  must  be  credited  to  the  bar.    "We 


SAMUEL  SA  WD0NE8,  M,  D. 


95 


his 
it 

hic 
lies 
1)0. 
Ive 


broke  Smooth-faced  Billy  last  night.  Ho  l)cgan  playing 
several  days  ago  with  a  few  tliousand  dollars,  but,  poor 
fellow,  did  not  hold  mit  long.  In  pi)ker  the  rake-olT  is 
big,  four  bits  for  every  deal  and  four  bits  for  every  j)air. 
It  is  not  a  po[)u]ar  game.  (Jiir  spring  trade  was  good. 
A  lot  of  eheeehokers  assumed  the  roK'  of  ])rot'»'ssionals, 
and  with  a  lot  of  little  tricks  and  actual  steals  as  ac- 
complishments made  big  clean-ups.     Now  actual  proft's- 


\.h 


th 


d  onlv  th 


d  th 


'tors 


sional 

make  money.  Jt  is  common  here  for  the  ])layer  to  be  as 
full  as  liis  sack — associate  conditions.  There  seems  to 
be  a  fellow-feeling  between  a  full  cljiima'it  and  his  full 
sack,  and  usually  the  fullness  of  both  ooze  out  hand  in 
hand,  and  both  mav  be  met  on  the  homeward  trail  after 
a  few  days  in  the  same  dilapidated  condition.  It  is  usual 
to  hand  one's  sack  to  the  dealer,  who  deposits  it  in  his 
strong-box.  It  is  common  h.ere  for  the  player  to  take  a 
pile  of  chips  and  continue  his  drinks;  and  it  not  unfre- 
quently  haj)pens  that  he  is  so  tired  or  so  slee))y  that  he 
walks  off,,  leaving  his  deposit  to  our  tender  mercies.  Why, 
sometimes  we  close  the  game  in  the  niornin*g  with  so  numy 
dust-sacks  left  behind  that  wo  are  at  a  loss  for  room. 
Yes,  most  of  them  are  redeemed  or  rode[)osited.'" 

There  are  no  new  facts  in  the  matter  of  gambling  to 
dilTer  from  all  old  historic  mining  camps.  The  profes- 
sionals live  by  it,  as  do  the  proprietors  of  tlie  game. 

Just  lately  a  smart  Aleck  M-ith  the  brand  "CJoldy"' 
started  out  to  boat  the  record  of  daniphools.  lie  beat 
it  so  many  leagues  that  he  forfeited  his  rights  entirely 
to  the  damphools'  club.  They  may,  howt'ver,  institute  a 
forty-second  degree  for  him.  Goldy,  by  close  attention 
to  business,  with  a  blink  eye  on  supplies  and  a  sliarp  eye 
on  corners,  had  accunnilated  above  '$*20,000  in  dust ;  then 
he  let  himself   loose   on  the   town.     Of   course   he   was 


.  1 

\ 

V 

\ 


\\ 


r 

1  \ 

't 

4' 

;■ 

i     i**, 

>     ^  1 

i, 

i ' 

1* 

•     f( 

< 

"■(' 

r- 


if 


( 


i: 

r 


•     f 


96 


THE  DECLINE  AND  FALL  OF 


tendered  the  freedom  of  the  city;  all  fools  arc  when  they 
have  a  bounteous  hand.  In  two  weeks  ho  had  gambled 
a,\ay  his  $'J0,000  in  tola — all  ri,%'his  and  titlrs  thereto 
and  to  all  its  fragments.  His  wreck  of  scattered  brains 
will  scarcely  servo  as  a  foundation  for  a  new  foriunc, 
since  so  niauy  new  fools  arc  encompassed  hero  and  (tppo- 
sition  nmst  bar  trade.  If  (Joldy  had  a  claim  on  J-Ildorado 
we  would  not  say  "Poor  fool,"  for  a  few  days'  clean-up 
would  fill  his  sack  and  he  would  be  with  us  once  again. 
Take  a  tumble  to  yourself,  (jloldy.  Go  marry  a  squaw 
and  live  on  brain  food — she  will  su]>ply  you  with  dried 
fish.  You  may  in  that  way  get  credit  enough  to  receive 
Christian  burial! 

It  is  said  tlie  civil  government  of  the  Klondike  pro- 
poses abolishing  gambling,  but  at  present  the  government 
suggested  is  sitting  o!i  dog-sleds  at  the  head  of  the  Yukon 
awaiting  ways  and  means.  It  is  short  of  not  wheels,  but 
motive  power.  ]\Iore  dogs  are  necessary  to  run  the  gov- 
ernment— to  run  it  down  to  Dawson.  It  makes  one  mad 
to  reflect  upon  gambling,  to  think  of  (me  man  in  a  trick, 
a  scheme  of  baiting  a  hook  with  gold,  a  miserable,  sneak- 
ing hook  wherewith  to  take,  to  hook,  to  steal,  to  sneak 
from  some  fellow-mortal  his  gold,  his  goods,  his  toil,  his 
cache,  his  family's  life  and  support,  to  wrest  this  from 
him  and  them  and  store  the  ill-gotten  cache  as  his  own  I 

THE   LONGEST   NIGHT. 

Oh,  the  cold  and  dreary  winter!  Oh,  the  cold  and 
weary  winter! 

It  is  cold  and  dreary  sure  up  here  in  Alaska,  yes,  to 
some  of  us  weary.  The  government  thermometer  has  al- 
ready marked  02°,  and  that  any  fool  knows  is  very  cold. 

We  all  stand  it  like  heroes;  we  must.     The  sled  and 


SAMUEL  SAWBONES,  M.  D. 


97 


M- 


to 

al- 

)ld. 

ind 


axe  up  the  hillside  for  wood  ifj  a  terror.  The  ni<:;ht  is  like 
\nn\\^  bound  down  in  a  diin,!^^'o!i,  bound  down  helpless  ly 
(•U'l'v  conceivable  ma.-s  aiul  i-ollrction  »d'  bedrlotlies,  wear- 
ii:;^'  apparel,  and  ui  household  articles  that  can  ciwer  one. 
(iellin;^  up  in  the  morning  is  a  terror,  is  full  ol"  fear  and 
trembling  amid  snaj)ping  of  frost  and  freezing  things  in 
cans  and  buckets.  Meals  are  eaten  with  a  reserve  grown 
of  the  possibilities  of  a  whole  winter  of  this  which  would 
run  the  laiili'r  so  low  that  worse  than  cold  may  follow. 
But,  thanks,  the  ij'l°  proved  to  be  only  a  (old  snap,  A 
breathing  sj)ell,  a  warm  wave,  is  already  ])eei)ing  in  to  see 
liow  we  faced  it,  how  we  bear  ii{)  with  tl:e  freaks  of 
Alaska's  Jack  Frost.  It  looks  us  over  carefully,  ears, 
nose,  cheeks,  toes,  and  congratulates  us  upon  having  so 
happily  outwitted  Jack  the  rustler,  for  not  a  kick  is  com- 


ing. 


I  have  no  almanac  to  consult  in  the  matter  of  longest 
day  and  night  and  therefore  am  not  olllcial.  This  TM\ 
day  of  Decendjcr  1  observe  the  shades  of  night  setting 
down  upon  us  from  about  .'>  P.M.  Night  does  not  fall 
upon  us  suddenly,  unexpected.  We  are  so  hemmed  in 
by  the  mountains  at  Dawson  that  the  sun  is  down  long 
before  its  legitimate  retiring  hour.  This  time  of  year 
the  sun  does  not  seem  to  fdl  the  bill — to  obey  the  mandate 
accompanying  its  introduction  to  us — to  shine  by  day. 
I  am  quite  sure  no  one  here  iias  seen  it  shine  for  the 
past  two  months.  It  has  a  simple,  sluggish  habit  of  get- 
ting up  sometimes  during  the  morning,  possibly  rising 
over  the  distant  south  hills  about  the  hi'ight  one  could 
reach  with  a  ten-fool  pole.  There  it  sits  merely  outlined 
above  the  horizon. 

December  -31.  It  might  have  had  the  graclousness  to 
greet  us  to-day  if  only  to  say  '*(lood-day,  friends.  "We 
will  meet  soon  again  and  1  will  stay  with  you/'     ]\Ir. 


V 


n 


4,' 


) 


ij 


i 


98 


TEE  DECLINE  AND  FALL  OP 


fi 


ll 


i  / 


if: 


i 


!^ 


Sun,  we  will  forgive  you  showing  us  the  cold  shoulder 
if  pome  day  you  open  up  to  us  gold  galore,  and  we  will 
g.)  along  flirting  with  tlie  silvery  moon  or  sport  with  that 
fancy,  fickle  aurora  borealis  for  the  present. 

"The  sun  rises  in  the  east  to  open  up  the  day."  Oh,  no ! 
My  good  brethren,  you  must  close  your  shops  up  here  in 
the  winter.  It  does  not  rise  in  the  erst.  'Way  down 
south  you  look  for  its  peep  into  day.  To-day  about  11 
A.M.  it  mounts  its  southern  stairway,  takes  its  throne  in 
an  obscure  balcony,  reclines  there  until  2  P.M.,  then 
glides  down  the  bannister  of  the  same  southern  stairway 
and  disaj)pears  until  to-morrow. 

Mechanics  at  outside  work  get  in  only  a  few  hours' 
time.  Miners  of  course  work  by  candlelight.  And  yet 
I  must  confess  the  winter  is  not  so  very  weary.  Time 
passes  in  some  inconceivable  way.  Daylight  is  utilized 
in  getting  wood  and  water  and  in  marketing.  Evenings 
go  in  cooking,  house-cleaning,  errands,  gossip,  and  news- 
gathering.  If  weary  the  bunk  is  always  open  to  us,  and 
sleep  up  here  goes  hand  in  hand  with  eating.  We  never 
have  our  fill.  The  most  hardened  sinner  can  sleep  ten 
hours  out  of  the  twenty-four.  Yoii  will  suggest:  "A 
letter  home  now  and  tlien."  You  would  not  suijfTpst  it 
from  our  standpoint.  I  am  from  home  now  five  months 
and  not  one  word  from  there  has  reached  me.  Under 
such  conditions  one  quite  loses  taste  for  writing  letters 
home.  Of  course  letters  home  Avere  prolific  for  months, 
but  by  this  time  we  have  forgotten  what  we  have  here- 
tofore recorded.  IMoreover,  we  are  learning  that  we  have 
written  innumerable  lies  to  the  outside.  We  are  learn- 
ing that  only  one  news  item  of  six  is  reliable.  We  have 
already  learned  to  not  believe  anything  Ave  hear,  and 
only  after  personal  investigation  can  we  vowck  for  an 
">.    We  arc  afraid  to  chronicle  any  news  lest  we  must 


SAMUEL  SA  WB0NE8,  M.  D. 


M 


dispatch  a  letter  to  correct  it.    The  old  way — our  way — 

of  ncws-fratlu'riiif;,  from  iiKHitli  to  month,  is  i\\\'\[v  llirill- 
ing,  but  tlio  old  liladdvr  at  home'  would  blush  itst'lf  int-) 
an  apoplexy  to  be  cauj,dit  in  10  per  cent,  of  llic  lyiii.i,' 
that  make?  up  our  daily  news.  Tliese  an^  to-day's  head- 
lines: "A  nu<;get  was  found  to-day  in  I'^hlorado  woi,Ldi- 
ing  just  one  pound."  "Xo.  21  has  made  a  m-w  strikr. 
The  pay  streak,  three  feet  thick,  pans  out  $100  per  pan." 
"Hunker  has  a  big  liud — a  pan  of  dirt  liiis  more  gold 
than  waste.''  "There  is  a  stampede  to  Sulphur;  No.  20 
has  $20  to  the  pan  and  claims  are  selling  for  $100,000." 
"Dalton,  who  went  out  on  the  first  ice,  was  robbed  and 
killed,  with  his  four  partners.  They  had  $  10,000,  which 
was  carried  olT.''  To-morrow  e\ery  one  of  these  reports 
will  be  corrected  or  denied.  It  is,  however,  an  average 
daily  bulletin. 

But  home  haunts  ns.  Home  looms  up  every  day  as 
stanch,  honest  old  homo — yes,  sweet  home!  This  night 
would  not  be  so  long  if  the  morrow  waited  us  with  a 
cheerful  breakfast  and  a  cheerful  waiter.  Tf  we  could 
go  into  the  old  bath-tub  for  a  splash  l)efore  going  to  bed 
we  would  sleep  better.  If  we  had  a  bin  of  coal  at  $5  per 
ton  instead  of  wood  at  $40  per  cord  we  would  not  long 
for  home  quite  so  much.  And  if  just  here  I  could  com- 
pound a  glass  of  hot  rum  for  20  cents  with  a  good  cigar 
thrown  in,  instead  of  going  up  to  the  bar  and  paying 
$1,  I  would  sleep  to-night  and  dreams  perehance  would 
not  haunt  me.  If  somebody  from  home  was  bent  over 
this  cranky  three-legged  slool,  reading  as  I  write,  then 
this  longest  night  might  not  be  too  long.  Yes,  my  cof- 
fee-pot is  boiling  hot  at  ibis  present  moment  and  a  lunch 
is  peeping  out  of  the  box — cujilioiird,  T  shr)uld  say — and 
such  an  appetite!  Only  a  Utile  dried  herring  and  a  sea 
biscuit !    And  do  you  think  I  cannot  nudvc  merry  over  the 


\ 


'A 

♦  ■ 


i  \ 


'.if 


t     -fl 


f? 


1 
1/ 


100 


THE  DECLINE  AND  FALL  OF 


I 


IJ 


i 


I 


■  I, 


' 


exit  of  tlio  longoi-t  (lay  with  this  feast?     Not  everybody 
elbowing  mo  about  Dawson  can  give  thanks  for  as  much. 

Saloons  arc  /ijradually  closing  because  whisky  is  giving 
out.  A  home-made  whisky,  "liootch,"  is  in  vogue,  but  it 
kills  at  a  given  number  of  rods.  Dancing  halls  are  in 
full  play,  but  with  the  exit  of  whisky  it  will  be  exit  girls. 
Gambling  must  wane  with  hootch  and  other  stimulants, 
yet  will  hold  out  against  almost  every  odd.  Men  and 
miners  get  good  pay  and  are  generally  provide>l  for,  but 
out  of  '1,000  peoj)le  in  and  about  Dawson  there  is  an  un- 
dercurrent of  misery  that  the  "widow,"  or  the  tallow  dip, 
can  never  bring  to  light.  There  is  a  genteel  element  who 
came  here  the  Lord  knows  for  what.  Xo  visible  means  of 
support.  "Too  proud  (o  beg,"  these  are  the  ones  now 
dreaming  of  home  and  thanking  their  stars  that  the 
longest  night  goes  to-day  and  that  sunshine  ere  long  will 
come. 

There  are  some  veritable  nabobs  in  Dawson,  some  who 
even  keep  not  carriages,  but  dog  teams  for  luxury,  and 
dogs  are  worth  $000  to-day,  while  their  keep  is  equivalent 
to  $1  per  pound  of  food. 

Samuel  Sawbones  came  in  to-day  and  placed  a  four- 
ounce  bottle  of  laudanum  on  my  shelf.  A  lawyer  out- 
side, but  driven  up  here  by  the  panic — the  gold-bug  rule — 
approached  the  doctor  with  this  little  bottle,  and  poor 
Samuel  gave  him  $3.50  for  it.  "Why,"  said  Sawbones, 
"I  saw  want  in  the  shadow  that  man  made  by  the  moon- 
light." An  old  chap  sixty-five  years  old  pulled  up.  "Want 
some  wood?"  Charity  looked  out  from  his  face.  "Yes." 
lie  piled  up  his  little  sled  load  of  limb  wood  and  figured 
•14  wpiare  feet  at  37  cents  per  square  foot,  "l^leven  dol- 
lars and  eighty  cents,  sir."  "And  how  nmch  to  cut?" 
"Four  dollars,  sir."    I  cut  it  myself. 

Many  sit  this  longest  night  in  cold  abstraction  as  to 


i 


-J 


w^ 


% 


I 


¥ 


■I 

.1* 
'4 


I'lIK    WIDOW    ON     rilK 
Kl-ONDYKK. 


A 


\   \  1' 


i; 


i 


8AMUKL  SA  W BONES,  M.  D. 


101 


how  to  mnko  this  linrjcrinp;  wiiitor  moot  lato  sprinrj.  Rut 
in  face  of  all  this  there  is  ^'nhl;  the  ^^iilchos  are  all  full 
of  gold.  That  is  what  wo  stauipoders  hero  to  the  Khm- 
(liko  oanio  for;  and  why  shall  wo  not  gather  it  in  and 
oarrv  it  homo? 

Well,  tho  tallow-dip  fiend — he  who  oornored  the  candlos 
— has  had  his  day,  and  from  now  on  will  bo  in  the  do- 
clino.  Tho  widow  will  soon  have  short  hours'  work  again. 
Tho  saloons,  gambling,  dancing,  all  those  that  thrive  hy 
night  alono.  will  be  sorry  tho  longost  night  has  oomo  and 
gone.  All  tho  rost  of  us  will  join  hand  in  haiul  and 
jubilate  over  it.  Tho  widow?  Well,  sho  deserves  hon- 
orable montion.  In  fact,  to  half  tho  i)oi)ulation  of  tho 
Klondike  the  longost  night  would  bo  twioo  as  long  only 
for  the  light  of  t!u^  widow.  Candles  have  already  dropped 
in  prioo,  yet  most  of  them  cannot  buy.  To  us  tho  light 
of  thy  oonnteiiance,  O  dejir  wi(b)W,  must  drive  dull  dark- 
ness away.  She  is  fractious  at  time>^ — would  not  bo  a 
widow  if  she  wore  not.  She  is  fastidious,  again:  must 
bo  fed  on  tho  fat  of  tho  land  and  tho  crund)s  of  tho  bacon 
must  bo  well  out  of  tho  grease  if  you  will  depend  upon 
her  brightest  smile.  She  resents  tho  cold  and  settles  down 
to  a  poor  icy  glimmer  until  you  warm  her  well.  She 
spits  and  flutters  much,  according  to  how  tho  barometer 
sits  down  upon  her.  She  must  bo  dressed  to  a  nieety  or  she 
may  get  into  a  pet.  She  may  be  gay  and  lively,  dull  or 
stupid,  just  as  you  coax  her.  It  never  failed  that  I  got 
out  of  temper  and  tried  to  drive  her  but  that  I  had  time  in 
tho  gloom  of  her  rebellion  to  jiondor  and  roj>ent.  Oh,  no; 
the  widow  of  the  Klondike  does  not  llirt  and  run  away 
with  a  better-looking  man.  CJivo  her  her  dues  and  all 
goes  "By  your  leave,  sir!"  So  unlike  the  widow  of  homo 
associations!  In  fact,  she  is  strictly  what  you  make  her 
and  never  off  color.    And  with  all  licr  faults  wo  lovi;  her 


'     It 


I 


102 


TUE  DECLINE  AND  FALL  OF 


?till.  Tlio  Hno  point  of  a  Klondike  widow  is  timt  nny- 
body  cnn  ninkc  one:  a  flat  or  half  tin  can  ;  twist  of  candle- 
wick  nicely  adjus-teil  over  tie  toj);  this  lilhd  with  hacou 
fat  or  lard. 

T  am  sittin;,'  out  this  Innfjest  ni^dit  hoping'  to  he  of 
Fcrvico  rccordin;:^  niinute-  that  n>i;;ht  ^Miiile  the  llwai- 
sands  who  may  follow  us  to  these  wilds.  Ilow  futile  will 
such  hope  h(! ! 

This  nif,'ht  must  finish  its  own  reflections.  The  aurora 
has  u  hri^ditness  in  it  that  1  fain  would  copy,  hut  it  will 
not  chb  and  flow. 

And  now  the  widow  spluttered  as  if  to  say  "to  bed." 
This  I  will,  and  with  more  than  tho  usual  grace  repeat 
"Now  I  lay  me  down  to  sleep."' 


WIN'DY  ARM. 


Ah,  thou  flendish,  j^luttonous  Windy  Arm!  divo  up 
thy  dead,  frivo  np  thy  feasting  upon  us,  and  say  "finis"  to 
"tales  of  woe"  now  ready  to  ho  written — already  written. 

Yes,  all  was  calm  and  quiet  when  our  little  boat-load 
put  its  trust  in  tho  <?ood  behavior  of  Windy  Arm.  They 
did  not  know  that  every  turn  in  Windy  Arm  meant  a 
change  of  weather,  of  wind  and  waves;  that  every  hour 
meant  weal  or  woe  to  the  landlubber  sailor,  "^riiey  soon 
learned  this.  Yes.  Christine  Xillscm  M'as  a  buxom  lass, 
fair,  a  little  fnt.  with  a  little  brogue  and  a  light  step. 
Just  a  little  Swedish  was  left  in  her  speech  through  her 
mother's  early  prayers,  for  she  was  American  almost,  just 
a  year  or  two  of  infancy  wanting.  But  she  was  all  Amer- 
ican in  go,  in  get  up  and  dust,  in  matters  of  the  mighty 
dollar,  in  muscle  and  physical  endurance.  Christine  had 
crossed  safely  and  with  honorable  mention  the  notoriou.^ 
Skagway  trail.     She  had  crossed  it,  and  praise  be  raised 


BAM  U  EL  SAWBONES,  M.  D. 


103 


las?, 

|top. 

lior 

just 

her- 

had 
long 
ised 


up  to  her,  witliniit  shiftiiif;  Ikt  bunion  upon  tlio  l)n(k  of 
tlio  hi'jislly  l)(»iiv  l)iilk  in  >liJijit'  ul'  iiiiiii,  lilt' Siwasli  IikIiiih. 
(Jhristino  hail  nwuK'  her  dthul  upon  (lie  hliorcs  (»!'  Windy 
Arm  with  a  family  scwin;,'  machine  strapju-d  t(»  hrr  hack 


bound    for    Dawson   on    tlio    KhmdiK 


She   di'caiinu   o 


f 


making:  parlccc^,  moccasins,  caps,  and  mittens  fur  the 
bonanza  kin^s  of  that  camji.  Nor  was  she  much  oil'  her 
base  in  the  spueuhitions,  oidy  that  the  hcsl-hiid  jdans  of 
incti  and   mice  aft   gan^^  agh'c.     ('hrislinc'>  cituraye,   her 


ly  f< 


lee,  and   lier  service   in  catuj*   made   lier  an   ai 


le   h 


come 

ce])tahIo  passenger  for  the  mute  ddwn  ihe  river.  Tlireo 
of  the  stern  sex  occupied  the  frail  shij)  that  was  to  laiul 
her  ami  her  nuuhine  on  the  Kh)ndiki'  shore.  One  at  the 
helm  and  two  at  tiie  oars  is  the  \\^\\\\\  ship's  crew  on 
Windv  Arm.  Alas!  Christine,  that  thou  art  so  cdniclv, 
so  fresh,  so  charming,  for  else  Windy  Arm  might  not  now 
be  colliding  .<o  high  its  victims,  its  season  not  so  al)undant. 
Of  all  the  arrivals  at  Daw.son.  the  most  harassing  tales, 
the  most  extensive  lies  are  told  regarding  Windy  Arm. 
The  waves  at  nuiny  ])oints  in  the  most  modest  account  are 
not  less  than  twenty  feet  high;  other  stories  make  tlicm 
fifty  feet.  Just  where  there  is  always  a  sereneness,  a 
calm,  on  the  lake  to  make  one  take  one  easy  hi'cath,  then 
the  next  short  turn,  only  the  length  of  a  boat,  where  it 
tundjles  the  craft  in  a  mountainous  sea,  there  the  steers- 
man cast  one  wayward  sidelong  glance  at  the  blossom 
cheeks  and  sparkling  eyes  of  Christine — cast  a  fatal 
glance,  for  in  that  glance  he  forgot  the  rudder,  and  this 
iilip|)ed  from  his  hands  as  the  fair  girl  slipped  iido  his 
head;  a  fatal  covetous  glance  indeed,  for  that  moment,, 
the  very  spur  of  that  moment,  one  of  these  iifty-feet-high 
waves,  born  of  Windy  Arm,  struck  the  craft  aft,  and  our 
upturned  boat  rode  on  its  crest,  a  bare  structure;  nothing 
more  was  to  be  seen.     Two  strange  freaks  need  here  be 


\    (1 


104 


TIIK  DECLINE  AND  FALL  OF 


'* 


I 


chronirlcd — rlironiclrd  only  .'uul  not  f'xpliiinod.  Tho 
l)ont  overt  urn in^'  sliii)[)cd  its  Itiilk  in  air,  which  htiuycd  il 
\\\)  \\\\\\v  the  car^^M  >|)illL>il  out  aM<l  sank;  spillrd  cut  all 
>\\\{'  Christine  and  the  stet-rsnian,  who  each  cliin;;  to  a 
cre-s-heani  and  were  free  to  hreathe  in  the  air  ihaniher 
us  ahove  ereate(l  instead  of  cumpelled  to  drown  in  tlie 
water  and  sink  with  their  eiini|iaiiioiis  ami  their  posses- 
sions. The  second  freak  was  that  the  wave  Ihat  wrecked 
the  f-hip  was  the  last,  if  not  the  sole,  wave  sent  Itooniin;^ 
that  h(»ur  and  at  that  point  at  Windy  Ann.  'riieid'ore 
tlie  wreck  lloated  on  the  peaceful  hosoni  of  that  lake  with- 
out chan^'e  of  position  or  without  either  danger  or  relief 
to  the  hidden  contents. 

The  ahsence  of  any  very  dear  thin;,'  that  draws  two 
people  to^^'cther,  or  intuitiveness  or  instiiut,  iniirht  have 
left  one  or  each  of  the  two  vielims  to  his  or  her  spe(  ial 
prayer  f(»r  safe  delivery  from  the  dan^i'ers  (d'  the  sea  and 
sudden  death.  Only  Christine  liad  never  heard  it  to  he 
her  duty  to  lay  up  treasures  in  heaven,  where  nio.th  and 
rust  and  lihe  waves  of  Windy  Arm  shall  not  rorru[)l,  there- 
fore slu;  hewaih'd  the  loss  of  her  sewin;,'  machine,  not  in 
the  feehh'  ton^^nie  of  sayiiii^  her  heads,  hut  in  fierce  hys- 
terical lamentations  that  could  he  heard  not  hy  the  pxls 
of  the  sea,  else  they  would  have  ^'\\o\\  uj)  the  machine,  hut 
hy  Ihe  steersman  of  the  sunken  craft,  who  at  onee  located 
her  and  extended  all  ])ossihle  consolation  alon;;  with  a 
lielpin;^  hand.  This  was  timely,  too,  for  Christine  in- 
('eed  mii^ht  have  forgotten  her  hold  on  existence  in  lier 
stniirsjjle  over  her  most  ])romisin;x  means  of  existence.  He 
('lasi)ed  her  clasj)  the  ti;,diter,  in  fact,  sqnee/.in;,'  it  need- 
lessly, if  not  lliouiihtlrssly,  whil(>  he  poured  into  her  list- 
less ear  hojie  and  life  and  tauii'ht  lier  to  forfj^ive  the  deep 
for  swallowinjT  uj»  her  all,  her  sewing  machine. 

They  floated  on  quietly,  nor  did  tluj  minutes  appear 


\ 


.M  yrvKL  sA  wnoxKs,  m.  d. 


105 


II- 
p 

r 


hours.  Tho  Htcrrxnuiii  fiii'|,'('tliii>,'  il;in^'<T,  hcpin  to  pour 
out  to  Christ inc  a  ^'n>nt  lii;;  oiskcf  ttf  woes.  Il«'  wan  u 
lonrly  crcatur*'  tired  of  liim-clf  iiiid  vft  always  eiitis- 
licd  until  liis  trail  Ird  iiitu  Ikts.  SiMcc  that  early  luoni- 
iii;;  when  lir.>L  lie  iiiel  her  and  po.ilid  his  is-ues — liis 
gruh — with  hers  for  tlie  \oya:,'e  duuti  the  ^  ukon  lie  !',<il 
lon^'e(l  foi"  soinethin;^'  more  than  was  his  >hare  during 
baehelorliood,  lie  hail  net  slept,  only  dreamed  ot"  her. 
Of  eourse  he  \\(»uhl  net  have  made  this  hreiik  in  hi>  rea- 
Konahle  plea,  i»nly  that  while  pleadiii;:  he  yet  had  to  he 
cxcrcisin;,'  his  n)ind  at  the  ^amc  time  with  hi«:  heart  de- 
visin^ij  ways  and  means  for  p-ttin^'  <»nt  ^^i  the  pre(liea. 
incnt  into  which  W'iinly  .\rm  had  plaeed  them;  therefon' 
ho  was  exeiisahle.  lie  e(»!itinne(l  nneheeked  pourin;,'  out 
a  tall'  of  love  and  mixiii^^  it  up  with  his  iiuentioiis  for  re- 
lief of  the  physical  strain. 

**I  know,  ()  Christine,  ilmt  this  i>  a  divine  interposi- 
tion 1(1  throw  uur  forluiies  into  one  channel — that  we 
may  float  down  life  hand  in  hand,  lieni't  with  heart  — 
that  our  lives  shall  he  one  I" 

"You  nasty  fellow!"  exclaimed  ( 'hi-i.-i  iiie,  hreakin^  out 
in  a   hysterical   lit.     "^'on   drown   my    poor   iniichine  and 


1 


M' 


v  sewiii'^  machine  \\as  woi'lli  a  do/en 


give  ine  one  mat 
men." 

"But,  my  dear,  I  will  Imy  yon  a  nmv  one  in  the  Klon- 
dike, and  I  will  discover  yon  a  mine,  and  we  will  load 
the  boat  with  ^n)l(l  jiiid  pull  to,Lr<'ther  our  way  home.  We 
will    he    married    and    will    not    for'^et    the    rudder    and 


Irown. 


And  then 


poor 


Christine  heiran  to  melt  and  nidoad  her 


bosom. 

'■  "Way  back  in  Dakota  I  have  a  sweetheart  —  Peter  tho 
blaeksmith.  I'eter  is  such  a  very  ;io(»d  man  and  he  love.s 
me  !ro.    lie  wauts  to  marry  me,  but  Peter  has  a  mother — 


t\ 


1 


^^ 


100 


THE  DECLINE  AND  FALL  OF 


a  poor  old  niotlior  to  support,  find  liis  strong  nrni  'way 
back  in  Dakota  will  not  kocp  his  niothor  in  jrood  strong 
ten,  in  soft  warm  hlankots,  with  a  good  roaring  lire,  and 
at  the  saniG  tinio  buy  nico  ribbons  and  a  lovely  bonnet  for 
a  wife,  with  Sunday  clothes  for  himself.  So  Peter  and  I 
agreed  that  I  should  go  to  the  Klondike  with  my  sewing 
machine  and  bring  back  a  great  bag  of  gold.  Then  we 
should  be  married  and  his  mother  should  continue  in 
luxury  as  at  present.  1  do  not  believe  a  kind  providence 
means  to  come  in  between  me  and  Peter,  and  that  my 
treasure  at  the  bottom  of  this  sea  was  providential,  and 
that  1  was  to  marry  some  one  else  who  perhaps  has  a  best 
girl  at  home." 

The  steersman,  still  undaunted,  combined  his  woes  and 
arguments. 

"But,  you  see,  your  sewing  machine  is  no  good  on 
the  Klondike;  it  is  no  means  of  support.  All  the  sewing 
is  done  by  the  Indians  with  bone  needles  and  thread  made 
out  of  deer  tendons.  They  sew  all  the  gloves  and  caps 
and  moccasins  and  parkees.  Nobody  wears  white  shirts 
and  collars,  no  fine  gowns,  so  I  really  think  a  divine  ruling 
interf(M'ed  to  save  you  a  useless  trouble  packing  your  ma- 
chine 000  miles.  And  as  for  Peter,  he  will  content  himself 
pounding  iron  into  gold  and  silver  for  his  d(>ar  old  mother. 
Tie  will  go  on  and  on  forever  to  the  same  tune,  of  course 
dreaming  now  and  then  of  his  fair  Christine  'way  ofp  in 
icy  Alaska  buried  there  in  the  bottom  of  the  treacherous 
Windy  Arm,  for  so  it  will  be  re]>orted.  Wo  all  turned 
under  and  we  will  all  be  reported  lost — wo  two  with  the 
two  oarsmen  and  the  machine.  We  will  not  correct  this 
report  and  Peter  will  not  be  the  wiser.  The  ring  of  the 
steel  daily  in  his  ears  will  soon  drown  'Christine'  out  and 
he  will  whistle  the  same  lively  tune  of  yore.     I  am  sure, 


'  \ 


\  : 


SAMUEL  SA  WBONES^  M.  D. 


lo: 


my  dear  Cliri.-tino,  you  must  see  the  hand  of  some  ruling 
power  in  all  this." 

Then  the  bokl  stcorj^man,  having  toucliod  bottom,  knew 
they  were  drifting  ashore  and  safe.  Vet  lio  recognized  the 
dangrr  ol'  lo.-ii'g  ( 'liristine,  and  accordingly  uuuh'  his  mas- 
ter iL^lroke.  He  rocked  the  boat  to  frighlcn  her.  and  when 
!-lio  clung  the  tigliter  to  him  he  rcj)eated  iiis  wiiole  lore  of 
love  and  made  Christine  believe  their  two  hearts  really 
beat  as  one;  that  the  machine  was  the  mistake  of  lier  life; 
that  Peter  is  far  happier  in  single  blessedness.  '^I'hen  ho 
again  rocked  her  almost  into  a  swoon,  and  Christine,  ir- 
responsible, faltered  a  feeble  "yes." 

In  the  waning  of  the  season  Christine  was  ensconced  in 
a  snug  little  cabin  on  Kunker  Creek,  there  baking  sour 
dough  bread,  fi'ving  bacon,  boiling  beans,  making  tea — 
yes,  splitting  wood  and  carrying  water  for  her  liege  mas- 
ter, the  bad  steersman  of  Windy  Ann.  lie  had  taken  a 
"lay"  on  llnnker  and  was  ))rospecting  the  claim.  Only 
15  cents  to  the  pan  is  yet  found,  which  after  paying  the 
owner  50  per  cent,  royalty  will  about  pay  wages.  This 
keeps  the  wolf  from  the  door,  but  no  milk  and  honey  goes 
with  it.  Nor  will  it  return  them  to  America  next  year. 
Yet  he  may  strike  it  richer  any  day,  and  this  hope  buoys 
him  up  and  on.  Not  so  poor  Christine,  ller  bold  steers- 
man, alas!  will  never  strike  anything  so  near  and  so  dear 
as  the  sound  of  her  old  lover  Peter's  hammer ;  this  is 
ringing  in  her  ears  from  morn  till  eve.  Now  and  tlien  the 
pick  in  the  mine  beats  tlie  rocks,  and  in  this  she  hears 
and  feels  the  spirit  of  her  dear  old  lover  beating  a  doubly 
tierce  stroke  as  if  to  deaden  his  soul  against  his  woe.  Slie 
imagines  this  vibrates  even  U])  to  Hunker  on  the  Klondike, 
and  she  holds  out  her  hands,  not  supplicating  him  to 
come  unto  her  and  deliver  her,  but  to  forgive  her  and 
forget. 


I 

I! 


i 


i 


T 


\  I 


108 


TUE  DECLINE  AND  FALL  OF 


SOCIETY    IX    DAWSON. 

Ah,  thero,  Samuel!  Off  to  tlie  Pioneer  Club?  Sure. 
The  first  dance  of  the  season  was  the  Alaska  Press  Club. 
I  was  not  honored  with  an  invitation,  but  sneaked  in 
the  back  door  and  viewed  it  over  all  the  same.  And  what 
did  I  see?  All  sorts  of  funny  tilings.  About  five  hun- 
dred of  the  funniest  thintrs  were  the  Press  Club  them- 
selves. "Xo,  not  five  hundred."  Well,  you  will  not  be- 
lieve how  many  newspaper  correspondents  arc  or  were 
on  the  Klondike  this  first  ru^li.  Xor  will  you  believe 
what  a  race  of  men  in  a  race  for  fame,  and  a  race  for 
claims,  and  a  race  for  news,  and  a  race  for  the  biggest 
thing  in  wind,  and  a  race  for  first  outside  to  get  the 
said  stuff  first  in  tlicir  own  special  bladder  publications, 
were  here  and  at -this  ball. 

There  was  Spleen  Hash,  of  the  San  Francisco  Gold 
Bug,  dancing  with  Siwash  George's  squaw;  tlie  Kansas 
City  Star  correspondent,  a  graceful  girl  in  full  dress, 
in  the  maze  of  a  waltz  with  '"Xigger  Jim"  in  muckluck«, 
shirt-sleeves,  and  suspenders ;  aiul  Jones,  of  the  F.  1., 
two-stepping  with  a  pretty  half-breed  whose  sweetheart 
danced  his  moccasins  off  in  a  jig  to  his  own  swearing; 
and — well,  the  society  editor  was  not  there  and  I  have 
no  copy  for  details. 

Next  on  board  was  the  Elks'  ball.  I  got  only  a  glimpio 
of  this  brilliant  occasion,  ^fany  were  dressed  in  the  cus- 
tnme  of  outside,  while  others  were  in  the  costumes  of  the 
country;  this  is  a  short  skirt,  mucklucks,  or  moccasins, 
and  a  parkee  of  moose  skin.  The  Elks  themselves — 
some  had  collar  and  tie  with  washeri  hands,  Eveiything 
goes.  It  seems  everybody  here  dances.  Everybody  had 
to  dance  to  get  into  the  country  and  think  best  to  keep 
on  dancing  until  they  dance  out.     The  Elks,  of  course, 


SAMUEL  SAWnOKES,  M.  D.  i()() 

gave  special   attention   to   the  native  moose  caters    who 
especially  love  dancing.  ' 

The  Catholic  fair  for  the  hospital  was  a  society  event 
as  well  as  a  charity  allair.  The  usual  fair  attendants  wore 
not  wantin<r.  Con^p^uous  was  ice  cream  only  half  fn.zen 
solid.  Of  course  dancin.^  folk.wcd— we  take  to  it  as  w^ 
do  to  bacon  and  beans.  We  i)ay  in  dust  at  the  fair.  The 
fair  unfair  wei-her,  cashier,  takes  our  "poke,"  j,u(>  c-i 
the  scales  some  promiscuous  weights,  dumps  in  the  e..n- 
tents,  and  hands  back  the  sack,  for  which  we  are  devout  I  v 
thankful. 

The  regular  weekly  Pioneer  dance  is  open  to  eh.v- 
chokers  with  respectable  antecedents ;  terms.  Wi  ]x-r  ni-l.f 
I  actually  saw  this  dance  break  up  at  0  A.:\[  Some 
fair  women  are  here  with  us,  but  so  few  one  must  almo.t 
shoot  his  way  for  a  partner  in  anv  event.  The  duk(>s  of 
Skookum,  tlie  Kldorado  kings,  and  the  Bonanza  chiefs 
monopolize  any  and  all  those  who  have  not  come  in  with 
husbands. 

There  are  some  breaths  of  select  airs  alivadv  afloat  I 
am  not  sure  how  long  the  squire's  wife,  or  tl.e  jud-e. 
or  the  bishops  will  stand  up  against  the  wives  and  daiHi- 
tcrs  of  claimants  of  Xo.  -  Eldorado  or  Bonanza  or  l')i.- 
covery  on  Skookum  Jim  Pup,  even  though  these  may 
iiiake  sad  music  with  their  h's  and  the  Siwash  linguism 
may  vibrate  harshly. 


a 


HOME  CO.MPAXroXS. 

"Ah,    little    mousie,    1    luai'd    vcu  !        I    heard    v,)u'"' 
Through  the  night  long  there  was  that  bus^-,  indusirious 
grinding,  that  pattering  of  linl.  f,,,,  Inal  Vapid  transit 
then  that  silent,  watchful  intrnm,  vr^.\  ,^nln  the  raspin-^ 
and  rolling.     I   heard   and   did  not   lling   a   toot   or  a 


w 


110 


THE  DECLINE  AXD  FALL  OF 


pillow.  Honest?  Yes.  The  old  instinct  was  to  hurl 
one  or  all  of  these,  but  my  ucJ  was  so  warm  and  the 
floor  so  cold  that  I  was  quite  willing  to  let  my  humanity 
^^■"t  the  hcltrr  of  me.  1  lay  there  and  listened  even  as 
VAX  flour  and  beans  and  sugar,  and  all  of  these  worth 
-$1  per  pound,  melted  away  under  your  good  intentions 
and  most  strenuous  exertions.  Where,  oh,  where  did  you 
como  from,  little  mouse?  You  did  not  come  to  Klondike 
for  gold;  you  are  not  here  the  old  associate  of  the  natives. 
You  arc  too  neat  and  clean  for  that,  too  industrious. 
Whence  came  you  and  what  is  your  mission  ?  I  am  from 
homo  now  these  six  months,  and  did  you  steal  ujxm  me 
to  make  this  niglit  ever  so  chilly,  lingering  to  mak(>  it 
homelike?  You  rouse  uj)  courage  in  me  and  drive  oif 
dull  despair.  Co  on,  go  on,  dear  little  associate,  in  your 
gaj''  feastings.  Forget  we  were  once  (Miomics  by  force 
of  circumstances,  and  l)eliev('  me  we  will  be  best  of  friends 
by  force  of  favors.  Yes,  yes,  littlo  niousic;  you  rock 
me  to  sleep,  even  willi  ilio  rustle  and  bustle  in  my  sugar- 
barrel.  I  am  in  dreamland.  "Oh,  there's  that  wicked 
little  mousie.  It  is  among  my  chestnuts.  Christmas  is 
coming,  too.  Oh,  kill  it!  Xow  it  is  in  my  hickory-nut 
bag.  Oct  out,  you  horrid  thing!  Yes,  mannna,  it  won't 
leave  iny  thin_<}s  alone  and  leave  mo  to  sleep." 


i^ 


CHRISTMAS    ON    THE    KLONDIKE. 

Christmas!  "And  did  you  really  have  Christmas  on 
the  Klondike?  Sure?  And  a  Christmas  tree?  And  a 
plum  pudding  and  turkey  dinner?"  "Well,  yes,  some  of 
lis  really  had.  Tlie  Christmas  trees  were  f(>w  ii:ul  scantily 
arrayed,  Init  we  liad  some  great  dinners.  Of  course  we 
had  no  eggs  up  there  this  winter,  and  no  cows,  nor  oysters, 
nor  cranberries,  nor  candies  of  any  sort  or  size,  nor  nuts 


I' 


( 


n 


I 


1 1' 


I 
'J 


I 


SAMUEL  8A  WBONES,  M.  D. 


Ill 


and  sweet  cider,  nor  popcorn,  nor  Christmas  cards,  nor 
whistles  and  horns  and  skates,  nor  sleigh-bells  and  horses; 
and  other  things  part  and  parcel  of  Christmas  at  home 
were  missing  here;  still  we  had  a  little  Christmas  in  our 
own  good  way,  1  saw  several  youths  take  their  best  girls 
out  sleighing  with  a  dog  team,  and  1  saw  some  men  who 
had  been  drinking  *'Toni  and  Jerry"!  And  there  was  a 
Christmas  ball  and  there  were  church  services.  We  had, 
too,  some  Christmas  dinners  that  may  astonish  you  as 
coming  from  a  famine  country  up  at  the  mines  on  Eldo- 
rado. I  have  a  picture  of  a  dinner  given  by  some  friends 
of  mine.  They  pooled  their  genius  as  cooks,  each  donating 
the  several  dishes  in  which  they  excelled.  They  had 
stored  away  some  fresh  moose  for  the  occasion;  they 
had  run  across  a  neighbor  with  a  bag  of  grouse,  a  winter 
species  which  inhabit  here,  and  he  gave  them  a  share  of 
his  shoot.  One  of  the  quarto  has  a  widespread  reputation 
on  "sour  dough"  bread  and  he  provided  a  fair  sample. 
The  bill  of  fare  ran  about  thus:  Bean  soup;  fried 
salmon  belly;  broiled  moose  steak  with  evaporated  onions; 
roast  beans  with  bacon ;  canned  cabbage  with  pig's  jowl ; 
roast  grouse  stuffed  with  peas  and  granulated  potatoes; 
tomatoes,  cheese,  pie,  cake — a  hona  fide  plum  cake,  and 
oh !  such  a  great  cake  it  was  I  weep  over  it  yet. 

Then  my  neighbor  Soggs,  who  is  not  a  cook  nor  a 
baker,  but  lives  to  cat  and  truly  picks  all  sorts  of  points 
for  his  palate,  had  a  Christmas  dinner  r.U  by  and  for 
himself,  but  he  let  me  in  to  taste  it.  He  came  in  the 
country  late  with  a  light  outfit,  but  by  industr}'  and 
rustle  had  fattened  up  his  larder  beyond  possibilities  of 
many  of  the  rest  of  us.  He  makes  his  own  bread,  as 
everything  else;  he  let  me  look  on,  willing  to  donate  any 
little  crumbs  I  might  pick  up. 

'No,"  he  says,  "I  have  not  begun  dinner  yet,  but  I 


«? 


1) 


f 


112 


THE  DECLINE  AND  FALL  OF 


can  get  it  up  complete  in  half  an   hour.     My  bread  is 
baked." 

Then  he  took  down  his  biu-kcL  of  sour  dough  and  began 
operations.  First  ho  poured  into  a  dish  and  stilTeni'd 
enough  for  dunijtlings;  this  he  set  to  boiling  with  a  stew 
of  moose  meat.  Another  lot  he  shortened  for  pie  crust, 
■'.vhich  at  a  later  stage  he  plastered  his  plate  with ;  then 
he  minced  up  dried  apple,  apricots,  prunes,  raisins,  mixed 
them  rapidly,  and  tilling  the  phite  made  a  covering  of 
batter.  It  took  a  place  in  the  oven.  Then  graham  gems 
popped  np  out  of  the  same  batter  bucket  and  a  little 
later  a  big  ginger  cake,  lie  believed  he  had  almost 
enough,  as  he  did  not  (.'are  to  sit  long  at  the  dinner, 
not  having  any  gossipy  friend,  nor  cigar.  But  oh,  my ! 
that  moose  pie !  It  haunts  me  still.  And  the  gems !  Each 
one  was  a  nugget.  The  pie — he  gave  me  of  the  pie  to 
taste,  and  I  am  speechless  in  the  matter  of  portn^ying  the 
pie.  Try  it,  try  it,  anybody,  the  combination  of  fruits 
and  the  plan  of  building.  N^othing  turned  out  of  that 
one  little  "sour  dough"  bucket  but  seemed  hashed  up 
for  a  feast  for  the  gods.  "No  hand-outs  for  the  merry 
Christmas  to  the  kids?"  No.  No  kids  called,  and  I 
have  not  seen  a  ginger  snap  since  in  the  country.  I  do 
wonder  if  I  can  learn  to  make  them.  I  will  go  in  to 
Soggs,  my  next-door  neighbor,  and  say  unto  him:  "I  am 
starving  in  these  foreign  parts  for  ginger  snaps  and  there 
are  none  in  the  land.  I  come  unto  you,  for  your  house 
is  full  of  ways  and  means,  and  I  need  not  want  for 
ginger  snaps  if  you  will  give  me  the  recipe  and  the 
coaching  necessary  to  make  them."  Of  course  I  will 
have  'way-up  ginger  snaps  from  the  present  writing. 

You  people  'way  off  in  the  south,  keep  your  weather 
eye  open  for  the  Klondike  cook  book.  I  will  offer  to  the 
public  a  'way-up  breakfast  gotten  up  in  three  minutes; 


11 


SAMUEL  SAWIiONKS,  Af.  D. 


113 


a  f^ood  (linnrr  in  tliirly  iniiiut(.'s;  a  swell  party  Christ- 
mas (limu.'r,  withoiil  I  he  usual  re(iuisitus — ^"Ao-'^>  t'vain, 
oysters,  turkeys,  fruits,  Icinuns.  It  will  make  pork  and 
lu'ans  palatable;  show  you  how  to  economize  cold  cakes, 
burnt  cakes,  sour  bread ;  how  to  obscure  horse  meat  and 
incorporate  it  into  caril)ou  for  select  company;  how  to 
make  a  relish  of  salt  salmon  belly  which  will  say  "Ugh!" 
to  lobsters ;  which  will  show  how  to  keep  house  in  gn.'ut 
shape  without  kitchen  furniture  or  cooking  utensils. 


EGOS. 


Among  tlio  big  heads  and  big  dealers  in  Dawson  one 
finds  big-fool  results  often.  Last  year  the  eggs  of  the 
N.  A.  T.  Company  arrived  hero  packed  in  salt.  They 
came  in  fresh,  and  I  have  it  from  first  hand — or  mouth 
— that  the  restaurateur  sold  his  single  egg  for  $1  and 
had  a  ready  market  until  he  laid  his  last  egg  in  its  little 
dollar  nest;  then,  after  crowing  just  a  few  times  over 
it,  ho  had  to  sliut  his  shop,  for  beans  and  bacon  would 
not  down  without  an  vgi^.  The  salt,  too,  was  in  it  so 
far  as  the  trading  company  fared,  not  the  restaurateurs, 
for  the  salt  brought  its  15  cents  per  pound  as  readily 
as  the  o^g  its  dollar.  In  fact,  the  N,  A.  T.  Company 
had  a  safe  investment — "quick  sales  and  big  profits'' — in 
eggs.  Never  yet  was  a  thing  invented,  or  grown,  or  made 
loo  good  for  the  American  trader  nor  half  good  enough 
in  profits  for  the  present-day  corporations.  This  yciir 
the  leading  lights  at  the  Chicago  end  of  the  N.  A.  T. 
Company  did  not  pack  its  eggs  in  salt.  Did  the  >f' 1 
each  and  15  cents  for  salt  at  the  Dawson  end  look  tci 
small?  I  give  it  uj).  As  far  as  I  can  learn  he  had 
hatched  in  his  own  head  a  new  scheme,  a  unique  one, 
which  must  be  tried  at  the  expense  of  his  company  as 


i 


it 


1 


r 


lU 


Jl/J^  DECLINE  AND  FALL  OF 


likewise  at  tlio  expense  of  we  lum;;ry,  fastidious  mortals 
looking  down  the  Yukon  for  the  eg;,'s'  arrival,  lie  had 
each  and  every  egg  electrocuted,  then  j)acked,  then  shipfjed. 
'^riie  nutiUts  operandi  I  cannot  give,  for  the  original  in- 
ventor has  not  given  it  to  us;  no  douht  lie  has  a  caveat 
upon  the  process  in  the  Patent  Olllce.  Xor  can  I  e.\|>lain 
the  difTerent  rights  and  titles,  the  claims  thereto,  nor 
the  ])ro(its  to  he  realized  therefrom.  Whether  an  ohject 
was  to  kill  and  preserve  hy  liie  electric  volt  the  little 
chicks  already  within  the  slu'll  and  sell  tliem  to  the 
restnuralcur,  and  through  him  to  us  old-timers,  for  spring 
chickens;  whether  to  only  j)revent  their  growth  and  jjropa- 
gation  under  the  sunnner  sun  of  tl  i'  Klondike,  whic.'h 
liatches  mosquitoes  at  a  temj)eralure  of  l'^0°  ahov(> ;  or 
whether  some  damjdiool  had  assured  him  the  electric  shock 
would  kill  all  microbes  within  or  likely  to  get  through 
the  .shell,  and  thereby  preserve  the  v,:^}^  fresh  for  time  and 
evermore,  to  make  it  quite  worth  the  dolh'r  which  it 
would  comnumd  right  here  in  camj),  I  know  one  thing 
only:  the  eggs  duly  arrived  on  the  conijiany's  swell  boat 
Hamilton.  No  remarks  were  made,  no  ])rotests.  They 
were  stored  in  the  company's  most  elaborate  warehouse. 
No  kicks  came.  Slowly  ami  by  d(>grees  there  was  an 
unusual  congregation  of  Siwash  dogs  about  that  ware- 
house door.  Then  the  employees  tried  to  shorten  their 
hours  within  the  doors  of  that  special  warehouse^.  Finally 
(^•iptain  llealey  began  to  swear;  then  everybody  knew 
something  serious  was  turned  up.  In  short,  the  Siwash 
Indians,  used  to  foul  fish  and  stinking  things  of  all  sorts, 
were  paid  extra  wages  to  carry  out  u])on  the  banks  of 
the  Yukon  the  eggs  in  their  nice  labeled,  extra  finished 
boxes,  with  the  electrocuted  chicks,  microbes,  and  also, 
T  fear,  hope ,  and  fortunes  of  the  great  inventor  of 
Chicago. 


* 


it 


it 


(r 


it 


111 


\i 


\^     ¥■ 


f 


II 


HAMLKL  SA  WUUSKS,  M.  D. 


lU 


nous. 

Dopffl  nro  If'pil  triuliT  on  the  Klondiko;  not  only  on 
the  Klondike,  hut  np  niid  down  the  Yukon  and  over  all 
Alaska,  'i'lu!  wiiitiT  of  lS!lV-!)8  was  csjurially  nifuionihii' 
in  till'  nuitter  (d*  our  ohli^Mtions  to  (lo;,'s,  for  in  tiicin  was 
placed  our  drpciidcnce  to  run  away  from  starvation,  as 
also  we  hoped  much  fro!n  (lifni  for  supplies  and  for  re- 
lief in  general.  It  was  heralded  Ilia*  (he  home  govern- 
ment was  sueeeeding  the  arhilrary  police  administration 
by  a  hraneh  u[  its  own  civil  rule,  a  governor-g«'neral  and 
his  Ktair.  hut  the.^«'  did  not  come  in.  Why?  Dispatches 
said  they  were  encamped  on  the  headwaters  of  the  ^'ukoa 
and  coidd  not  move  because  they  had  lost  a  pack  of  dogs, 
and  the  message  incidiTitally  mentioned:  "Also  some 
mounted  police  were  drowned  witii  the  dogs."  Thus  we 
see  the  wheels  of  government  resting  upon  dogs.  And 
later  experience  lias  demonstrated  that  never  since  has 
the  governnu'ut  of  the  Klondike  been  on  so  solid  and  80 
resj)ectable  a  foundation. 

During  this  season  thorongld)red  dogs  were  worth  from 
$300  up  and  half  as  much  for  scrubs.  Thoroughbred  is 
as  distinctive  hero  in  dog  as  in  horsellesli  outside.  Thor- 
oughbreds here  are  the  malamuth,  a  native  Kskimo  iid)red 
somewhere  and  much  larger  than  the  common,  and  a 
Hudson  liay  Company  dog,  the  husky,  with  very  nuich 
wolf  in  his  make-u]). 

There  an^  many  outside  dogs  here,  which  Inchuh?  nreat 
Danes,  Newfoundland,  slie])herd,  the  "yellow  dog"  and 
pet  dogs.  Very  few  of  these  last,  however,  for  not  many 
of  us  are  willing  to  amuse  our  women  and  children  with 
dogs  eating  food  at  $1  ])er  ])ouii(l.  These  out-country 
dogs  make  good  work  dogs,  (piite  as  good  to  pull  and  as 
strong  as  natives  if  well  trained,  but  their  feet  do  not 


4i| 
ll 


fl 


I 


r 


116 


THE  DECLINE  AND  FALL  OF 


rb 


If 


j  ■ 


f 


stand  tho  Avork  as  well  and  tlicy  nood  more  or  less  pro- 
tection from  extreme  cold.  They  also  must  be  fed  more 
carefully,  needing  much  the  same  me.-s  we  take  our- 
selves on  the  trail,  only  wc  can  palm  off  upon  them  a  sec- 
ond quality.  Food  a  little  burned  or  a  little  sour  or  a 
little  sad  may  be  fooh.'d  upon  the  dogs  and  never  a  word 
said. 

The  natives  work  and  feed  well  upon  fish  alone  and 
with  but  one  meal  a  day,  yet  when  so  kept  tliey  show  it  to 
be  rather  hard  times  by  their  poverty  flat  sides  and 
scrubby  furs.  "Dot^^  niushers"  of  our  own  race  keep 
much  better  and  finer  teams  than  do  the  Indians.  Al- 
though tho  Indians  may  have  well-bred  dogs,  they  show 
their  associations  and  their  feeding.  A  dog  fancier  could 
write  a  book  u])on  tlie  material  and  could  talk  dog  with 
as  much  fluency  and  gusto  as  tho  jockey  can  dilate  upon 
the  thoroughbred  racer,  lint  aside  from  his  being  the 
beast  of  burden  in  this  country,  he  is  the  same  miserable 
cur  in  many  of  his  s])are  moments  and  in  many  of  his 
parts  as  you  find  him  at  home — in  your  neighbor's  dog, 
of  course. 

Dogs,  like  horses,  vary  in  their  capacities.  Size,  of 
course,  tells,  but  his  pulling  is  not  wholly  weight;  like 
in  a  horse,  'tis  blood.  Now  and  then  wo  see  trotting  along 
a  wee  bit  of  a  whiffet  with  a  sled  and  a  great  big  duffer 
thereon,  maybe  an  Indian,  maybe  a  self-styled  white  man, 
Scores  of  miners  have  one  dog;  this  for  company  to  some 
extent,  but  chiefly  for  use.  In  the  winter  season  one  dog 
in  a  sled  with  the  man  at  the  gee-pole  will  carry  from 
200  to  400  pounds.  One  dog  cannot  pull  nearly  as  much 
as  one  man  at  a  hard  scratch,  but  their  good  work  comes 
in  this  way:  He  will  pull  all  tho  time.  Should  I  be 
carrying  my  worldly  possessions  or  freighting  my  spring 
clean-up  to  Dawson,  I  would  pull  hard  al  every  hill  and 


.-   ! 


^^-^ 


SAMUEL  SAWBONES,  M.  D. 


117 


t» 


pull  a]on<;  over  up  fjrado,  but  at  down  fjrndo  or  on  a  level 
1  would  spell  mysi'ir  iitid  let  poor  "mush"'  continue  the 
burden.  The  coiitinujil  diii;^-  and  the  rapid  gait — dog 
trot — make  dog  teams  eount  in  rreightmg.  Six  dogs  will 
not  pull  more  than  half  a  ton,  but  they  will  make  two 
trips  to  the  horse's  one.  I  hired  a  no-get-up  Knglisliman 
with  a  one-horse  sled  to  haul  me  some  wood.  It  was 
less  than  two  miles,  good  sledding,  no  hills,  no  obstacles, 
and  by  the  hour  it  cost  me  $1*5  j)er  cord;  then  a  team  of 
dogs  linishcd  the  contract  for  $'20.  For  plain  freighting 
or  traveling  the  dog  is  'way  ahead  of  the  cayusc  or  mule, 
aside  from  his  convenience. 

Dogs  are  snuirt,  wo  all  know;  being  smart  they  are 
tricky;  being  tricky  they  are  cussed;  being  cussed 
there  is  no  end  to  the  fool  things  they  may  do.  They 
start  and  liven  up  under  the  startling  conunand  "mush!" 
They  gee  or  haw  as  the  old  })low  horse  of  the  Dutch 
farmer.  They  whoa — sometimes — when  you  make  the 
kind  su,  "estion.  A  lady  in  to  see  me  but  to-day  said  she 
went  up  to  stake  on  Nine  Mile,  and  her  dogs  ran  away, 
leaving  her  to  walk  a  distance  which  exhausted  her. 

"'b'es,''  she  says,  ''these  dogs  know  when  women  are 
behind  them,  and  just  as  soon  as  the  sled  U[)set  and  we 
fell  off  they  ran.  Twice  they  got  away  from  us  and  were 
caught  on  the  claims  uj")  the  ci'(>i'k.  If  wi'  go  in  a  basket 
sleigh  from  which  we  do  not  fall  out  the  dogs  always  stop 
upon  its  overturning,  for  they  know  they  cannot  ti)eu 
get  away,  but  if  from  a  common  sled  we  roll  off  ami  out 
of  reach,  maybe  down  the  bank,  then  they  do  run." 

The  dogs  on  the  Klondike  are  almost  universally  hitched 
in  single  iile,  and  they  all  lile  around  the  turns  and  crooks 
and  between  trees  and  about  stumps  without  stoi)ping  to 
consider  circumstances,  and  when  one  is  riding  the  sled 
Vv'ith  no  person  at  the  gee-pole  to  guide,  then  the  sled  is 


(i 


i 


i 


118 


TUB  DECLINE  AND  FALL  OF 


continually  floundoring  about,  upsottin^;  and  snubbing. 
When  a  young  fellow  takes  his  best  girl  out  sleigh-riding 
lie  must  run  the  dogs  at  the  gee-pole,  or  if  he  is  swell  and 
has  a  basket  sleigh,  then  run  behind,  guiding  from  the 
liaiidle  baek  of  the  sleigh,  lie  by  no  manner  or  means 
suggests  to  himself  the  })rivilege  of  riding  with  his  sweet- 
heart. Yes,  from  over  the  rail  behind  may  come  some 
tender  soft  wooing,  but  with  her  Eskimo  hood  of  skins 
and  furs  possibly  not  one  little  coo  startles  the  drum  of 
her  padded  ear;  and  were  he  to  be  running  at  the  gee- 
pole  ho  would  fare  no  better,  for  his  glance  would  only 
rest  upon  the  same  furs  and  feathers  without  penetrating 
within.  lie  must  not  be  caught  naj)i)ing  at  his  post, 
dreaming,  sighing,  for  perchance  here  comes  a  team  down 
the  trail,  and  should  the  two  take  a  turn  to  the  same  side, 
Miss  Daisy  will  take  a  tumble  to  herself  which  her  lovei! 
will  scarcely  be  able  to  adjust.  Yes,  they  will  sometimes, 
quite  frequently  indeed,  intermix,  esi)ecially  turning  cor- 
ners and  on  curves.  Still  worse,  they  often,  in  passing, 
pile  up  in  a  wholesale  dog  fight,  the  whole  team  of  each  part 
and  party,  all  hitched  and  tangled  into  the  worst  imagina- 
ble football  mass.  And  were  it  you,  my  dear  friend,  what 
would  you  do  about  it  if  your  girl  was  wound  and  bound 
and  doubled  up  and  ])il('d  up  into  a  big  writhing  mass 
of  dogs  and  sleds  and  furs?  Why,  you  W(nild  say,  "The 
Lord  have  mercy  on  my  soul,"  and  proceed  to  pound  the 
dogs  over  the  head  and  pry  open  their  jaws,  for  these 
Eskimos  are  wolfish  and  game.  Then  you  M'ould  hunt 
up  the  bundle  and  unravel  it.  Maybe  she  is  frightened, 
may])e  laughing,  but  you  M'ould  not  laugh,  for  here  is  a 
dump  of  ruins.  Her  robe,  worth  $'200,  her  parkee,  $100, 
her  hood,  $50 — all  these  will  be  ruined  and  you  will 
have  to  replace  them.  A  freighter  will  run  a  load  up 
the   Klondike   district    or   over   anv    broken   tract   from 


SAMUEL  SA  WBOIiES,  M.  D. 


119 


twenty  to  forty  miles  and  back  the  next  day.  He  uses 
the  dogs  about  as  he  would  use  his  horses  as  to  rest  and 
feed  and  work.  (Joing  out  of  the  eounlry  thiriiig  the 
winter  is  usually  a  matter  of,  say,  three  to  four  dogs  to 
three  men.  These  will  carry  for  each  nuin  his  total  out- 
fit, whieh  must  be  limited  to  VZ^t  pounds;  added  is  the 
dog  feed,  which  must  be  two  pounds  per  day  for  each  dog. 
The  trip  may  be  nuule  in  thirty  days,  but  forty-live  days 
is  the  more  general  time.  ]\Ien  going  out  must  help  th(!ir 
dogs — must  go  ahead  to  break  trail  if  blown  sliut,  and  ilo 
the  heavy  pulling  over  snow  banks  and  ice  drifts.  The 
man  who  cannot  hitch  himself  to  and  be  dog,  in  fact,  had 
better  stay  in  and  go  down  and  out  on  a  dog  raft  in  the 
spring. 

Dogs  make  very  good  pack  animals  and  are  used  no  little 
bit  for  such  purpose,  especially  in  summer;  in  fact,  it  is 
the  only  way  to  utilize  them  in  the  summer.  They  are 
easily  disabled  by  overloading.  They  cut  up  the  same 
funny  freaks  under  })a(k-saddles  as  they  do  in  harness, 
never  quite  forgetting  they  arc  dogs,  born  for  the  chase, 
for  fighting,  for  food  of  all  sorts  and  kinds  and  in  all 
seasons,  and  it  looks  to  me  also  for  fun.  Last  summer 
Bill  Bludson  was  working  a  bar  claim  'way  up  on  a  "pup" 
of  Forty  Mile.  These  bar  and  bench  claims  we  work 
during  sunmier.  Billy's  claim  was  in  the  wilderness,  and 
before  making  his  fall  clean-up  he  was  down  to  the  town 
and  borrowed  from  his  old  friends  some  dogs  to  help 
pack,     lie  had  a  glorious  summer  and  a  clean-up  made 

orious 


gl 


by 


gold 


Down  the  gulch  ho  comes  as  jubilant  as  if  his  path  was 
gold,  whistling  ''When  the  cows  come  home,"  and  his  four 
dogs  panting  under  their  great  weight — two  heavy  gold 
sacks  straddling  the  back  of  each.  Just  at  the  highest 
chord  of  his  musical  march  a  jack  rabbit  bounced  up  and 


im 


120 


TEE  DECLINE  AND  FALL  OF 


pi'- 


m. 


olT  i;i(o  IliG  wilderness!.  Billy  and  the  whole  Dcsdcnionii 
iiiigiit  'ocllow  wlioji  and  make  llcirs  Half  Acre  noi^y  v<iih 
tlu'ir  voices,  but  they  could  no  more  stop  this  psiek  ol' 
I'iskinios  after  a  mad  hare  than  they  could  walk  up  over  the 
aurora  borealis.  But  I  am  happy  to  chronicle  that  Jiilly 
made  a  second  clean-up  which  exactly  balanced  the  first. 
One  dog  was  caught  under  a  fallen  tree,  another  had  top- 
pled over  on  his  back  and  his  great  bag  held  him  down, 
and  so  on  till  all  were  corraled. 

Dogs  do  not  bark  in  Alaska.  There  is  no  bark  in  a 
native  dog,  while  outside  dogs  want  to  ape  the  ohl-tiiners 
or  else  are  ashamed  to  give  themselves  away  as  chee- 
chokers.  Maybe  they  are  actually  ashamed  of  the  low, 
onery  association  which  it  carries  them  back  to.  You  see 
they  are  now  "the  noble  beast,''  and  their  walk  and  con- 
versation must  be  in  accordance  therewith.  But  oh !  oh ! 
oh !  Deliver  me  from  the  prevailing  social  system  among 
these  dogs.  I  need  not  recall  to  you  that  much  wolf  ex- 
ists in  these  native  dogs.  Then  as  a  form  of  communica- 
tion, for  ebullition  of  fellow-feeling,  or  for  self-amuse- 
ment, maybe  for  cussedness,  you  have  their  howl,  their 
weird  bellow,  their  piercing  cry,  their  shrill  tonijue,  with 
all  the  echoes  of  these  from  the  surrounding  hills  and 
caverns  in  a  blending,  a  most  excruciating  combination — 
these  with  the  corrupted  bark  of  the  non-linguists  in  any 
and  every  pitch  interwoven,  this  pooling  of  discord  and 
hideousness  weaves  a  web  of  agony  that  I  cannot  picture. 


LETTERS. 


Samuel  Sawbones  stood  three  days  in  the  line  before 
the  post-office  door,  but  could  not  reach  the  inner  temple. 
He  gave  up  the  race  and  sent  through  one  of  the  devious 
ways  a  five-dollar  piece  to  the  postmaster  and  promptly 


v„.i^ 


SAMUEL  SAWBONES.  M.  D. 


121 


received  his  first  home  missive.  It  was  full  of  all  sorts 
of  ncwH,  and  blessings,  and  promises,  and  queries.  The 
dear,  good  Nella  was  tulicitous  in  the  extreme  for  liini 
in  any  and  all  parts,  but  was  quite  undemonstrative  in 
all  care  or  anxiety  about  herself.  This  was  in  striking 
contrast  to  her  early  letters.  She  gave  no  demonstrations 
of  dying  because  of  his  absence.  She  did  not  pray  for 
advice  as  to  what  she  should  do  to  occupy  her  mind  and 
relieve  it  from  longing.  She  exhibited  evidence  of  having 
quite  enough  to  do  to  drive  oil*  ennui.  She  had,  in  fact, 
kept  on  making  innovations  upon  poor  man ;  was  taking 
on  all  rites  and  ceremonies  of  the  new  woman  as  fast 
as  conscience  would  allow  them  to  ripen.  Not  all  this 
was  confided  to  the  dear  doctor,  but  enough  to  make 
his  reflections  anything  but  happy. 

Of  course  she  was  coming  to  the  Klondike  with  the 
first  wave  of  spring,  and  she  w'ould  outfit  according  to 
the  details  of  his  experience,  yet  she  had  suggestions  of 
her  owii.  If  they  pleased  him  she  might  carry  them 
tliroiigh.  Samuel  could  read  that  the  girl  was  becoming 
tainted,  first  by  worldly  people,  then  by  worldly  vanities, 
again  by  the  world's  disgruntlers.  lie  observed  that  she 
was  experienced  enough  to  not  need  a  chaperone  or  guide 
and  protector;  that  she  would  outfit  as  to  comfort  and 
utility  without  reservation;  that  she  had  lost  scruples 
against  rustling  and  laying  up  treasure  here  below  in  any 
and  all  the  mysterious  Avays  of  the  present  world.  Her 
tender  passions  broke  out  here  and  there  in  the  letters, 
but  not  many  tear-drops  obscured  the  pages.  She  was 
curious  to  know  the  political  aspect  of  the  country  and 
as  to  church  work  and  the  state  of  society.  I  wrote  out 
'■'Society  in  Dawson"'  for  Sawbones,  wdiile  he  himself 
chronicled  how  the  churches  of  the  Lord  cannot  stand 
up  against  the  Klondikers — that  both  were  in  ashes. 


122 


THE  DECLINE  AND  FALL  OF 


She  f^avo  quite  a  bit  of  lior  private  life,  which  was  in- 
deed pure  and  sweet — soiiietliing  of  the  old  past;  but  in 
the  donipptie  events  of  hor  ncit^hbors  and  acquaintances  it 
was  painful  for  Samuel  to  read  a  "thank-thc-Lord-I-am- 
not-like-otluT-wonien"  spirit  therein.  However,  all  Samuel 
thought  was:  "How  good  she  is  and  how  good  I  can 
make  her."  I  fear  that  at  the  same  time  she  was  think- 
ing: "TTow  good  Samuel  is  and  how  much  better  I  will 
make  him."  Why,  of  course  she  loves  him  still,  but 
when  a  woman  begins  to  love  herself,  when  she  becomes 
ambitious,  worldly,  covetous  of  fame  and  admiration,  she 
draws  upon  the  love  she  may  have  or  ought  to  have  in- 
vested in  some  noljle  manhood.  And  if  Sawbones'  sweeet- 
heart  had  not  witlidrawn  much  of  the  original  love  in- 
vested in  some  noble  manhood.  And  if  Sawbones'  sweet- 
had  not  withheld  all  the  old  affection  and  bestowed  it 
in  mutual  admiration  upon  her  woman's  rights  kin,  she 
would  still  bo  properly  and  delightfully  hanging  around 
Sawbones'  neck  and  wooing  him  to  a  lovely,  virtuous 
heart. 

Samuel  Sawbones  was  taking  a  breathing  spell  between 
his  letters  to  Xella.  The  dark  side  of  affairs  of  Dawson 
this  winter  Avas  reflecting  upon  him,  for  though  he  was 
well  grub  staked  for  the  season,  he  yet  knew  any  suffering 
and  hunger  would  appeal  to  him  among  the  first  for  re- 
lief, and  to  succor  distress  is  about  as  much  misery  as 
to  suffer  it.  The  first  letter  in  over  the  ice  was  duly 
answered  and  at  length.  All  the  details  for  her  trip 
were  given,  all  the  demands  of  the  journey  and  the  camp 
were  listed,  the  future  possibilities  were  recited  to  a  nicety. 
Due  credit  and  thanks  were  returned  for  the  love  and 
kindness  showTred  upon  him,  and  no  comments  offered 
on  the  pending  crisis — her  transition  from  true  woman- 
hood to  crude,   duplex  woman's  might  woman's  right. 


!«' 


SAMUEL  SA  WBONES,  M.  D. 


m 


Simple  Samuel  still  iK-lievcd  ho  could  fit  Iho  fair  girl 
of  his  first  adventure  with  goggles  through  which  she 
could  see  only  herself  and  not  the  aniazons  hy  which 
ilie  had  been  beleaguered  since  his  departure.  Voor 
cliap!  You  ought  to  have  experienced  that  when  woman 
once  gets  the  bit  in  her  mouth,  like  with  the  runaway, 
you  may  as  well  let  up  on  the  reins.  But  the  hope 
helped  him  through  the  weai-y  nights,  and  ho  never  lost 
his  cheerfulness  or  his  usefulness.  Everybody  in  camp 
shaped  his  or  her  ends  only  for  the  coming  spring  and 
the  coming  friends  and  foods. 

Scattering  mails  found  their  way  into  Dawson — now 
and  then  a  government  mail,  oftcner  private  mails,  and 
those  brought  Samuel  Sawbones,  \'U{\.,  ]\I.D.,  more  letters. 
These  two  questions  were  proposed  in  one:  Is  riding  the 
bicycle  by  women  conducive  to  health?  Is  riding  horse- 
back astride  the  proper  thing?  The  doctor  would  not 
commit  himself  in  answering.  "For,"  said  he  in  the  letter, 
"medical  men  disagree,  and  I  will  not  presume  upon  wis- 
dom that  will  demolish  either  section.  Except  where  the 
solicitor  is  ill  she  will  not  accept  the  advice.  Healthy 
women  can  almost  to  a  unit  ride  the  bicvcle  without  in- 
jury  to  themselves,  but  sick  women  never.  As  to  riding 
horseback  astride  I  cannot  advise  seriously,  because  of  the 
comic  picture  the  subject  presents.  I  have  always  in  mind, 
upon  seeing  a  woman  with  her  short,  dumpy  legs  astride 
a  liorso,  Iho  monkey  riding  the  ring  horse  in  the  circus. 
Li  Xailh,  I  do  believe  it  is  only  a  laughing  matter  and 
not  one  of  health." 

In  another  letter  came  the  consideration  of  a  kinder- 
garten. "Shall  I  start  a  kindergarten  in  Dawson  ?"  "Oh, 
no !  Oh,  Lord,  no !  Have  you  not  learned,  can  you  not 
see  that  the  little  folks  of  to-day  are  'way  beyond  their 
limits?    Do  you  not  see  them  absorbing  time  and  attea- 


124 


TUK  DECLINE  AND  FALL  OF 


fi  '■: 


tion   and  cxpcnso  qiii((»  hoyoiul  justice  ami   <Tnntl   tnplc? 
Do  you  not  obscn'vc  tlit'iu  occupyiii;^  a  jiositioii  that  ^ood 
l)re(Mli!i<.^  liools  at?     Do  you  imt  see  siinplo  mothers  all 
aljoui  v<iu  inviiit'  tlio  lalior  and  1(»V(!  of  a  uilV  oxclu.sivrlv 
to  lu'i"  children,  f^'iviuf^  tho  bread  and  butter  of  the  family 
out  for  furs  and  feathers  for  them?     Do  you  not  see  the 
children  of  to-day  paraded  for  show,  pushed  before  audi- 
ences for  admiration,  and  shoved  among  friends  for  dis- 
tinction?   Tho  nursery  is  the  ])rimary  school  for  this,  but 
tho  kindergarten  is  the  finishing  academy.     You  know  very 
well  it  makes  them  only  babbling,  chattering  geese;   it 
fills  their  little  craniums  with  only  a  batch  of  ])ictures 
which  the}'  show  oil  as  beforehand  to  mamma  and  her 
admiring  friends,   but  never  a  bit  of   brain    tissue  does 
it  grow.     This  is  all  wrong — this  making  a  little  store- 
house out  of  tho  little  one's  brain,  this  filling  it  np  with 
all  the  child-lore  that  sounds  so  cute  to  ns,  so  sweet  to 
the  dear  mother,  and  makes  it  so  precocious-appearing  to 
its  audiences.     This  trammels  tho  wee  one's  brain;  ob- 
structs its  real  thinking,  growing  capacity ;  destroys  its 
capacity  as  workshop.    Oh,  yes — it  does  make  them  smart. 
And  the  end-man  of  the  minstrels — how  smart !     What 
a  smart  thing  that  magpie  is,  with  his  tongue  split !    How 
cute  the  parrot  is!     No,  no.     Let  the  little  ones  go  along 
thinking  for  themselves.    Don't  cram  them  full  of  fanciful 
thoughts  of  your  own;  that  way  they  will  never  learn  to 
think   and   invent   and   work   for  themselves.      It   seems 
plodding,  but  a  little  later  in  life  you  will   notice  tho 
great  strides  they  take,  and  how  they  will  outstrip  the  pre- 
cocious outputs  of  the  kindergarten.     Now  I  say,  my  dear 
girl,  do  not  lend  yourself  to  any  of  the  fads  of  the  day 
unless  3'ou  see  in  them  wisdom  and  worth — not  because 
of  their  fancy  and  favor.     Of  course  I  recognize  the  fact 
that  the  kindergarten  has  come  to  stay  and  that  it  is 


SAMr.L  .sAvrnoM-js,  m.d. 


125 


ob- 
's  its 
lart. 
^Vhat 
How 
ilong 
iciful 
to 
teems 
the 
pre- 
deiir 
(lay 
tauso 
fact 
lit  is 


becoming  r('fo<,niiz(Ml  iis  a  Ic^Mtiinate  institution.  Yes, 
I  learned  years  ago  that  the  (|iia(k  ditetor  had  come  to 
stay  and  tliat  the  stronf,'(^st  arms  of  our  \\\w  cannot  hoost 
him.  1  nevertheless  advise,  steer  clear.  I  have  observed 
after  many  years  that  tlu'  hri^dit  juirlieiilar  star  in  tho 
childhood  gronj)  seldom  is  the  shiiiin;;  li,i,dit  that  leads 
the  busy  thron<,'  through  th(>  age.  Possibly  t!ie  great  men 
have  not  self-made  men  in  predominanee,  but  certainly  tho 
great  majority  were  no\  kindei'garten,  smart,  ])recocious, 
youthful  geniuses  like  these  to-day,  asjjiring  througb  their 
mothers  and  dear  teachers  to  enlighten  the  world.  In  a 
group  of  six  American  medical  men  I  met  looking  on 
at  the  London  clinics,  five  were  farmer  lads  in  vouth. 
This  means  that  the  slow-plodding  boy  of  the  ])low  v.'lio 
obtained  his  education  under  dilliculties  never  lets  go  his 
industry;  that  the  necessary  hal)ils  of  work  ami  perse- 
verance culminate  in  and)ition,  and  this  ever  goes  on. 
These  five  men  of  tho  si\'  studied  and  worked  and  still 
study  and  work,  and  they  arc  over  here  in  London  l)ecauso 
they  will  never  leave  anything  undone,  'j'his  illustrates 
the  starting-point  of  the  winners  of  the  great  race  over 
life's  course.  It  is  not  the  nicely  groomed,  fanciful  man- 
nered, brilliantly  tutored  kid  that  leads  tho  race  except 
as  the  minority. 

"What  T  have  said  concerning  the  kindergarten  output 
i?  preliminary  to  a  yet  more  serious  aspect  society  is  rapidly 
t, iking  on.  That  a  mother's  ambition  and  emulation  may 
b,>  gratified  she  sacrifices — ignorantly,  of  course — the  future 
of  her  child  and  at  t!ie  same  tiin(^  lier  own  ])hysical  and 
moral  health.  Tliat  she  mny  deennite.  ]);iniper.  and  edu- 
cate, as  she  verital)ly  believes,  her  child,  she  institutes  a 
life  crusade  against  increase  (»f  the  family.  It  is  (piite 
seldom  wc  find  a  young  family  of  to-day  which  numbers 
more  than  two  or  three  children,  and  in  these  families 


12G 


Tin-:  i)i:('f,iM:  A\n  fall  of 


,      ; 


WO  find  tlic  (Iflcrniinnl  ion  \n  niiikf  tlwil  lli(>  limit.  Only 
Ix'oiusc  \V(?  caniiot  ((hicitc  n  m1  i-i',i:-c  tlu'iii,  tlicy  say,  jis  our 
nci'^lilKM's'  cliildrcM  nvr  di;  .-"d  and  schooled,  do  wo  object 
{'>  iiioit'.  And  tlicti  uliiil?  A.'^k  the  j)oor,  JK^Mcst,  scruim- 
l';iis  doctor,  lie  will  tell  yi)\\  in  rending'  tones  that  his 
life  is  made  iniscrahlc  hy  those  pooplc  I  need  not  explain, 
for  you  may  know,  tliat  the  jnatlm'  of  having  or  not  having 
children  is  not  controlled  hy  any  legitimate  or  moral  law 
within  iho  invocation  of  the  family  concerned.  \or  can 
any  healthy  moral  ])reseription  he  givi'n  hy  the  doctor: 
yet  they  lly  to  him.  Hero  they  beg  and  j>ray,  and  when 
ono  most  dreadful  law  of  the  ton  is  read  to  them,  'Thon 
slialt  not  murder,'  they  sometimes  threaten:  'I  will  go 
to  Dr.  Puhlic  Executioner.  Vou  know  he  will  do  thlr-, 
thing.'  Yes,  I  know,  we  nil  know,  from  the  bloody  trail. 
Once  in  his  hands  they  are  ashamed,  and  in  one  of  two 
ways  they  never  return  to  the  old  family  Sawbones.  I 
dare  not  picture  liow  strong  a  hold  he  lir.s  grown  on  our 
community.  \ewsj)a|)ers  must  laud  him,  and  twelve  men 
cannot  be  called  to  convict  him  of  any  nefarious  outrage, 
especially  since  an  occasion  where  the  Supreme  Court 
seemed  to  forget  their  robes  of  ofTice  wore  more  sacred  than 
their  personal  obligations.  Yes,  the  one  desideratum  of  my 
own  return  liome  and  to  practice  is  the  struggle  against 
im))ortunities  to  liolp  through  this  encroaching  malpractice 
to  limit  the  family  to  that  few  whom  they  may  decorate 
and  embellish  in  the  kindergarten  and  the  like  prevailing 
fancy — the  military  parade  schools." 

Of  course  Pr.  Sawbones  followed  this  discourse  or  lec- 
ture, this  hobby,  with  some  very  nice  things  to  the  dear 
girl  left  behind.  She  evidently  forgave  him  or  did  not 
take  the  hard  work  wading  through  it  much  to  heart,  for 
she  returned  a  most  entertaining  answer.  Tt  may  in  part 
have  absorbed  enthusiasm  from  the  near  approach  of  her 


I 


Only 


SAMUEL  aAWUONHS,  AT.  D. 


127 


start  for  i\w  Kloiulikc  Vcs,  slio  wan  about  roady,  and  de- 
tailcd  her  IhingA  in  rmicli  tli(>  sj)irit  of  all  yoim^r  \ai\\v.. 
And  Saimu'i  was  imlu-rin^'  about  in  anticipation  of  tlic 
day  of  arrival,  and  witli  his  profi-ssional  duties,  and  with 
his  usual  unproductivo  speculations.  I  have,  in  fact,  ^'ivcn 
hero  and  there  his  little  acts  of  life,  and  ids  stories, 
and  exj.eriences,  and  it  nii^dit  he  well  for  mo  to  only  pick 
him  up  a^^ain  the  summer-time  coniini,',  while  1  record  my 
own  observations  and  the  advent  later  of  tiio  dear  <mes 
to  us  all  from  home. 


128 


TUE  DEC  LINK  AND  FALL  OF 


A 


AT  HOME  ON  THE  KLONDTK'E. 


i> '. 


% 


Jt  is  ('lirlstinas  eve  iiiid  yd  I  aiii  not  "at  Ikiiiic"  to 
any  one.  1  nin  nut  mixing  a  liot  Scoldi,  nor  tooling'  a 
wine,  nor  (loin*^  a  Welsh  ran-bil  lliis  cold,  lonely  evening, 
nor  could  I  gather  the  herd  lliat  would  be  aj^MvcaMe  to 
make  festive  \sitli  troni  the  miscellaneous  nuiss  of  human- 
ity here.  Kut  ahove  all  thin.^s  to  rejoice  at  I  am  in  my 
own  home,  if  all  alone  this  Christmas  (!ve — the  first  time 
quite  nt  home  siiu'o  leavin;^'  the  outside.  It  is  a  homo  nnich 
of  my  own  make  and  fui'nislied,  too,  not  from  second- 
hand stores,  hut  all  the  littin;,'s  of  my  own  make.  The 
iloor  of  my  cabin  is  full  of  cracks,  the  only  weak  rt  of 
it,  but  'tis  said  one  can  think  best  with  cold  feel  '  hot 
head.  But  1  must  confess  to  one  luxury  not  of  my  own 
make.  It  is  a  Brussels  carpet,  j)urchased  at  the  X.  A.  T. 
Company  store  at  $;i  ])er  yard,  liuildin;,'  was  conducted 
throu<,di  our  coldest  snap — (1;^° — and  the  stimulus  to  make 
it  good  and  warm  was  great.  Lumber  was  worth  $1*50 
per  thousand,  and  the  necessities  are  to  make  it  as  in- 
expensive as  possible.  jMy  ceilings  are  lined  with  striped 
ticking  and  the  walls  with  blue  jean.  This  is  artistic  and 
snug.  Viy  kitchen  is  arranged  to  make  life  easy.  A 
swivel  stood  in  the  middle  of  the  floor  allows  me  to  I'each 
the  stove,  the  dinner-table,  the  cupboard  and  larder. 

With  all  this  homo  arc  you  content  and  happy  and  do 
you  hope  and  pray  and  dream?  Are  there  no  tears  and 
longing  and  sighing?  Very  well;  this  is  home  on  the 
Klondike,  and  we  must  not  be  pressed  to  many  confessions. 
We  are  much  "at  home"  sleeping  up  here  ou  the  Klondike. 


I 


sAMi'icL  sAwnosi:.<.  .\r. n. 


120 


It  is  indeed  ;i  rdi-Ii,  oidv  wlit'ii  llic  llicniiomt'tt'r  ^t-ts 
down  1(1  id)oiii  t;o  one's  rnoniiii;,'  n:i{)  is  disturbed  by 
rnicldn-;  iind  snji|»|)ing  lUMon^'  liis  caii.H  ami  liis  wator- 
pails,  and  at  that  temperature  he  ol'leii  linds  his  feel  steal 
u|)  his  haek  and  Ids  knees  ajipmaeh  his  chin,  whde  thu 
icicles  about  thu  mouth  <>t'  his  sleepin^'-ba;,'  ;,'ro\v  so  big 
and  full  that  they  embarrass  Ids  breathing;  then  he  finds 
it  convenient  to  get  up  and  mak(!  a  lire. 

TTp  at  tho  mines  men  are  up  and  doing  at  H  o'clock.  Aa 
miners  must  board  themselves,  they  oeeupy  much  time 
wooding,  watering,  and  cooking,  and  get  in  only  six  or 
eight  hours  daily  of  hard  work  for  their  employers.  They 
dress  immensely  warm  and  of  course  sulVer  little  or  noth- 
ing from  the  cold.  The  prospectors  and  dog  mnslu-rs  on 
the  Klondike  sull'er  most,  'i'liey  "at  home"  are  ensconced 
fciimply  in  a  tent,  and  even  at  10°  a  tent  is  cold  sleeping 
and  cooking  and  eating.  No,  not  dressing,  for  they  aro 
always  dressed.  But  where  they  .«trike  good  wood  they 
keep  theniselvcv  thawed  out  and  tell  us  they  lik<^  it.  And 
I  might  make  uiyw*lf  believe  them,  for  they  have  a  man- 
ner of  rolling  themselves  up  into  a  knot  lik(!  the  Kskimo 
dog,  then  tying  themselves  in  a  fur  sleeping-bag  whieh 
ought  to  make  sleej)  warm  and  coxy  and  let  them  out 
iu  the  morning  ready  to  enjoy  frost  and   fresh  air. 

Ai'oiind  town  are  loa fi'i's  and  unemployed — no  homo. 
'!l'hey  luivo  to  drive  hard  bargains  with  Jack  Frost.  This 
n^.orning  at  4  o'clock  1  saw  one  on  a  box  outside  a  saloon 
snoring  in  deep  sleep  as  tliough  ho  might  be  having  sweet 
dreams.  The  deserving  poor  are  a  pitiable  class  here. 
They  may  have  been  victims  of  accidents  or  may  liave 
simply  come  here  broke  and  without  visible  means  of  sup- 
port. I  do  wish  they  were  all  "at  home"  outside  where 
they  came  from.  All  the  glitter  of  gold  disappears  in 
the  gloom  of  this  presence.     If  a  prayer  of  a,  wicked  man 


!■ 


130 


TUB  DECLINE  AND  FALL  OF 


•  ( 


Mould  nvail  I  sliould  pray  for  lliom.  Sonio  <>f  this  class 
(lr\f|()j)  into  expert,  ])r()Spei'(tiis  thieves  and  exom'i'ale  lis 
Troiii  prayer  and  .syiiipatliy.      ^'et  still  J  fe(d  for  them. 

"Ah,  ^'ood-iiiorning,  Dr,  Sawhoncs.  Come  in.  Isn't 
this  a  palace,  .sir?  There  are  no  heartaches,  but  look  at  the 
finger  ai'hes.  You  see,  that  liiiin<^  has  a  hundred  thou- 
sand tacks.  Well,  that  cold  snap  I  liit  my  fingers  every 
other  tack;  that  makes  fifty  thousand  times.  Oh,  how 
they  ache !  But  the  worst,  Samuel.  While  1  was  building 
a  man  sold  me  a  boat,  and  I  believe  he  stole  the  boat.  Yes, 
I  winked  at  it — received  stolen  goods.  The  Loi'd  forgive 
me,  but  you  know  1  had  no  nails  and  could  get  none.  I 
had  upset  my  stove,  in  which  was  burned  old  scraps  of 
oards  and  boxes,  but  this  only  furnished  a  few  nails.  I 
bought  this  boat  for  the  nails,  in  fact,  but  the  sin  of  buy- 
ing stolen  goods  hangs  about  my  neck,  and  how  am  I  to 
exorcise  it?'' 

Samuel  congratulated  me,  and  after  viewing  the  prem- 
ises he  remarked: 

"One  thing  is  wanting,  my  boy,  only  one  thing.  You 
are  not  quite  at  home.  1  just  witnessed  an  act  in  the  life 
of  an  old-timer,  Dick  Lowe.  His  squaw  wife  had  picked 
him  up  in  a  dancing  hall  a  little  full.  She  did  not  fall 
to  and  abuse  Dick,  but  only  said:  'You  do  not  love  mo 
any  more!'  And  her  liege  lord  remarked:  *0h,  pshaw! 
now.  Of  course  I  do !  These  white  girls  can't  chop  wood 
and  carry  water  and  eat  salmon  like  you  can.'  Then  this 
Siwash  maid  flung  herself  around  his  ueck  and  was  happy 
again.     So  long,  my  boy." 


SAMUEL  SAWBONES,  M.  D. 


131 


A  MINING  TRAGEDY. 


Tjie  day  of  the  resurrection  will  lliul  the  Klondiker 
up  and  doing  at  tlie  lirst  call  of  Gabriel,  lie  will  not 
need  to  wait  the  gathering  together  of  his  stray  particles 
of  dust,  for  there  is  none  such,  and  the  preacher  does  not 
say  "dust  unto  dust"'  at  the  funeral  rite.  Nor  does  the 
worm  fettdeth,  etc.  Man  goes  down  into  his  icy  tomb,  and 
if  perchance  a  smile  is  frozen  upon  his  lips  thus  he  will 
rise  again,  for  nothing  disturbs  him  or  his  resting-place. 
A  thousand  years  hence  and  the  eternal  frost  will  still 
have  cemented  this  clay  with  its  walls  of  muck,  which 
shall  not  open  till  the  judgment  day. 

On  the  bench  just  rising  out  of  Eldorado  Gulch  two 
bruises  are  observed  in  the  mossv  beds  covering  the  hill- 
side,  each  of  the  specific  dimension  six  feet  by  two. 

Peter  Hanson  and  Xels  Carlson  were  ])artners  in  a 
claim  on  Eldorado.  They  had  indications  that  ere  many 
days  they  should  strike  it  rich.  Two  honest  hearts  and 
busy  heads,  they  made  haste  in  this  miner's  sunshine,  the 
frosty  winter  months,  to  nuike  hay.  Only  in  persi)ective, 
however,  had  they  stimulus  to  be  so  busy  as  they  were — 
too  busy. 

The  routine  miner's  work  brought  them  about  early, 
first  io  their  breakfast,  then  to  the  matter  of  cleaning  the 
shaft  of  the  debris  fruin  the  nicrht's  burnini:,  and  sinking 
through  the  thawed  muck  or  gravel  preparatory  to  a  re- 
newed burning. 

One  heavy,  low  barometric  morning  our  friends  peered 
into  the  great  future  of  their  miue  and  hesitated  to  go 


132 


THE  DECLINE  AND  FALL  OF 


fti  '  ^'1 


f  II I 


m 


r  i 


down  to  work.  On  occasions  going  up  Eldorado  I  myself 
have  noticed  bad  air,  a  sort  of  fuming  air,  one  that  set 
my  lungs  to  rebelling  and  sot  me  coughing,  an  atmosphere 
that  savored  of  cussedness.  Well,  this  had  not,  strictly 
f-;pcaking,  jumped  the  claim  of  Peter  Hanson  and  Xels 
Carlson,  but  it  failed  to  vacate  in  good  order,  so  they 
did  chores  and  obeyed  the  mandate  '"wait"  while  this 
foul-smelling  air  slowly  moused  its  way  up  and  out.  After 
a  spell  Peter  Hanson  took  another  peep  down  the  shaft, 
but  the  lazy,  sluggish  gas  and  smoke  only  laughed  at  him 
for  his  hurry.  Cood-natured  like,  Peter  said:  "Have 
your  own  way."  Again,  after  another  spell,  he  came  back, 
and  it  is  not  strange  that  he  got  riled  at  the  nasty  tenant 
of  liis  castle  and  resolved  to  oust  him,  especially  since  the 
golden  nuggets  at  the  bottom  were  haunting  him.  Peter 
went  down  the  ladder  to  do  battle  with  this  foul  enemy 
as  a  brave  heart  is  inclined  to  do.  Yes,  he  had  a  buckler 
that  would  help  him  flglit  the  battle  of  right  and  might 
'way  back  at  his  old  home.  ''I  will  get  behind  thee,  Satan, 
and  boost  thee  out  whether  or  no !"  And  this  oozing, 
sluggish  smoke  and  gas — the  foul,  vile,  groping  thing — 
laughed  as  poor  Peter  dropped  down  into  its  embrace, 
for  it  was  the  jaws  of  Heath. 

Then  Nels  Carlson  came  from  his  little  Mc^ta  of  setting 
the  slapjacks  and  soaking  the  beans,  and  approaching  the 
mouth  of  the  mine  said:  "Peter,  how  goes  it?"  Looking 
down,  the  shaft  seemed  to  liim  still  full  of  the  noxious  stuff, 
and  not  quite  the  right  place  for  Peter  Hanson  to  be  rcc- 
onnoitering.  "Peter!"  cried  Nels  a  little  louder,  to  make 
himself  heard  through  the  gloom.  "Peter!  Peter!  where 
are  you?"  And  great  big  drops,  not  sweat,  but  of  blood 
serum  direct  from  Nels'  heart  forced  their  way  out  through 
his  veins  as  if  to  clear,  to  Avash  a  way  to  the  l)ottom  of  that 
shaft,  and  a  fearful  shiver  ovo-came  him.    "Peter!  Peter! 


SAMUEL  SAWBONES,  M.  D. 


133 


Peter!"  with  a  loud  voice.  A  liasty  glimpse  around  and 
about  revealed  no  neighbors,  no  attendants  within  reach. 
Succor  must  come  from  his  lone  strong  arm  and  brave 
soul.  I  wonder  if  Peter  Hanson  had  read  to  Xels  Carlson 
each  little  missive  from  home  and  the  niiinuscripts  of  his 
many  evenings  in  answer?  Tliey  nmy  have  niiuk'  Ncls 
the  hero  he  was.  lie  looked  but  for  a  moment  in  the 
face  of  that  vile  stufT,  that  combination  of  carbonic  oxide, 
and  creosote  fumes,  and  wliatever  else  that  arises  from 
the  burning  of  this  mountain  fir  in  airless  shafts  and 
settles  low  on  murky  (hill  days — !)ar*'ly  looked,  and 
the  nol)k'  heart  was  down  beside  poor  Peter  Hanson. 
j\Iake  way  for  Xels  Carlson,  thou  blaekeiuMl,  hellish 
thing!  Stand  aloof  there!  Nels  has  weight  to  carry. 
No,  not  miserable  dust;  he  has  better  stutf.  But 
see!  He  cannot  rise  tlirough  thy  heavy,  damned  op- 
pression! Take  wing  and  lly  his  presence!  Why,  even 
devils  may  run  when  gods  like  Xels  are  at  their  heels. 
Oh  !  oh  !  oh  !  Ye  will  not  ?  And  ye  gurgle  up  to  the  top 
even  poor  Xels'  last  breath,  the  only  pure  thing  left  to 
escape.  Heaven  take  poor  Xels'  soul  as  it  Hies  away 
from  all  this  corruption. 

Peter  Hanson's  long,  loving  missive  to  Susanna  Benson 
had  been  finished  loo  that  morning.  In  gathering  Peters 
little  effects  we  found  many  little  things  f-lmuing  the  love 
of  Susan.  Only  her  last  letter  may  we  let  you  look  into, 
and  we  will  all  together  sympathize  with   lu»r: 

"Peter,  come  home;  you  must  come  home.  ]t  is  not 
right  you  should  be  away  off  in  the  far  Xorth,  there  fight- 
ing the  decrees  of  a  wise  Providence.  He  did  not  make 
that  wild,  cold  country  except  for  His  wild  beasts  and  for 
the  tempered  Indians.  Vou  work  wrong  when  you  go 
there  to  fight  this  cold  and  the  diseases  which  grow  from 
the  bad  food.     Then,  Peter,  it  is  only  gold  you  bring  me, 


134 


THE  DECLINE  AND  FALL  OF 


1- 
I 


and  gold  is  worthless  beside  that  love  you  tore  away  from 
nio  to  soarcli  for  it.  Will  you  not  come  home  and  leave 
the  worldly  gold  to  the  worldly  men  who  have  no  love  in 
their  hearts?  But,  Peter,  1  am  ill  at  ease.  1  sec  had 
signs  and  I  dream  bad  dreams.  The  birds  sing  around 
me  in  mournful  notes  and  they  do  not  smile  as  they  used 
to.  The  snowbirds  from  the  Xorth  come,  and  they  look 
as  if  they  carry  me  a  message,  but  ere  I  ask  them  what 
they  droop  their  eyes  and  turn  back  again.  They  do  not 
greet  mc  as  of  old.  In  this  harvest  season  my  little  hum- 
ming-birds con)e,  but  they  would  not  rob  my  flowers  of 
the  honey  nor  did  the  liltk'  chips  come  for  their  usual 
(piota  of  garden  seeds.  What  does  it  mean,  Pelcr?  That 
tiie  time  approaches  when  1  shall  Ijc  shorn  of  all  sweets, 
all  harvests,  and  that  these  little  harbingers  of  sym])athy 
are  thus  wont  to  be  good  to  me?  And  I  had  a  sad  dream, 
IVter.  A  great  storm  raged  and  many  miners  had  to 
battk'  against  it.  T  feel  quite  sure  you  got  through, 
Peter,  but  1  should  not  like  to  see  you  battle  so  again, 
for  this  almost  worsted  you.  I  wanted  to  help  you,  but 
no.  And  I  fear  some  fieree-raging  thing  may  yet  over- 
come you.  I  sent  you  a  great  bundle  of  warm  things  k) 
fight  the  cold,  but  you  must  come  home  with  them." 

This  letter  did  not  give  Peter  warning,  but  he  grew  a 
l)old  knight  instead.  He  was  not  reserving  Susan's  warm 
(lothing  to  come  homo  in.  We  must  take  a  look  at  his 
lately  finished  h'tter,  too: 

"Wo  are  sure,  Susanna,  to  come  homo  with  great  bags 
or  that  which  is  good  above  everything  else — gold.  Xels 
v.v(\  1  have  found  it,  and  Ave  need  only  to  dig  it  out  and 
bring  it  home  to  you.  Then,  Susanna,  the  world  will 
smile  upon  us;  not  only  our  gold,  but  the  whole  world 
will  b(>  bright.  The  glitter  of  our  carriage  will  reflect 
glitter  to  the  roadside  and  even  to  the  rusty  pickets  that 


to 


SA^[VI:L  *s'.i  vr BOXES,  m.  d. 


1 


Oi> 


•■(aiiil 


-ejilinc'ls  lo  the  (iclds.     Our  di 


l)rilli;ijicy  that  will  iciivjct 
cliiii'ity   tluit   wo   luav    best 


aiiu)i)(ls  will  lend 


a  ^nvaLcr  than  their  owii 


I  III' 


ow   wi 


11 


heads  such  blessings  that  will  make  tl 
I'illow  of  the  saints.     Our  i'aniilv  will  b 


jrini^r  down   upon  our 
leni  rest  upon  the 


leeome  ffreat  and 


.;ood.     Fathers  and  mothers   baek   in   the  old   latherland 
nevermore  weary   except   to   prepare  themselves  for 


will 


that  city  made  of  <rold.     My 
unduly  excited  over  the  bad^  d 


poor  (l.'ar  Susan,  you  are 


reams,  aiu 


growths  from  your  excessively   II 
set  such  fancies  aside  and  love    h 


1  tl 


le  omens  are 


ite   imagination.     Please 
lonor,  and  ohev  mo  until 


perhaps  next  year  I  may  float  down  the  wild  Yukon  and 
land  by  your  hearth  (m-o  the  winter  sn!)w  tlies.  Xow,  be 
a  good  girl  and  put  foolish  things  out  of  mind  and  hc-art. 
Faithfully  listen  for  my  footsteps  the  next  season,  my 
most  cherished  saint,  and  I  will  abide  with  thee  forever." 
And  only  these  bundles  of  letters,  with  the  few  keep- 
sakes and  Peter's  sack  of  selected  gold  nuggets,  go  down 
the  wild  Yukon  and  out  to  Susanna. 


T 


I: 


i\ 


w 


i  I- 

\\ 


rr 


136 


TUE  DECLINE  AND  FALL  OF 


ITEMS. 


I 


In  the  spring-time,  late  spring-timo  for  you  outside 
but  early  for  us  on  the   Y'ukon   (about  the  lirst  day  of 
May),  the  populace  of  Dawson,  instead  of  lounging  about 
prominent  phiees  to  admire  tiie  llrst  parades  of  women 
in  gum  boots,  congregate  on  tlie  shore  of  the  river  and 
peer  up  and  down  wistfully,  earnestly,  to  catch  the  lirst 
impulse  of  the  breaking  ice.     It  is  thf^  great  important 
event  of  the  year — the  lirst  interesting,   thrilling  all'air 
after  the  freeze-up  six  months  earlier.     The  ice  goes  then 
a  little  later,  and  your  humble  servant  finds  himself  in  a 
furore  of  congratulatory  antics  much  in  the  manner  of 
a   New   Year   watch-meeting.     "Mr.    Sour   Dough,   sir?" 
"Sour  Dough  we  are,  sir!"     "Sliake!"     Yes,  and  why? 
Because  the  first  boat-load  of  new  people  from  outside 
is  just  in,  and  that  absolves  us  from  the  odium  and  op- 
pressiveness  of  cheechoker.     Yes,  the   newcomer  is  now 
the  cheechoker,  and  we  of  the  past  year  are  S(Mir  Dough. 
T  will  not  say  very  nmcli  about  the  cheechokers'  trail, 
it  being  such  an  oft-told  tale  that  it  must  sour  on  the 
sweetest  disposition  pressed  into  a  hearer,  and  1  may  add 
{liat  wo  on  the  Klondike  have  as  much  reason  to  go  into 
spasms  over  the  mere  mention  of  tlio  Stikiue  or  Skagway 
or  Dyea   trails,   with   the   horrors   of   Windy    Arm,    the 
treacheries  of  White  Horse,  the  Tomljstones  of  the  Five 
Fingers,  the  catacombs  in  the  bottom  of  Lakes  Bennett 
and  Linderman,  as  had  any  or  all  of  you  on  the  outside 
from  the  inquisitions  of  certain  newspaper  correspondents; 
for  we  not  only  admitted  the  loss  of  myriads  of  friends. 


•a- 


SAMUKL  SA  WBONES,  M.  D. 


137 


op- 
o\v 

lil, 
:lio 
(1(1 
into 


ive 

lett 

ide 

ts; 

ds. 


but  also  foarod  conininination  of  the  head  water  of  the 
Yukon.  Yes,  tho  all-wnter  route  too  has  been  rehearsed, 
the  old  seaK'r  stories  reelothed,  while  horrible  whalin<i; 
expeditions  have  heen  recounted  as  new  Klondike  expe- 
riences. And  not  only  do  we  rejoice  that  we  no  loiigir 
are  "Cheechoetah,"  but  that  daylight  has  come  and  suii- 
shine;  and,  too,  that  coniinunication  is  c.-tiiblished  with 
the  outside  and  wc  may  have  letters  from  home  in  a  fort- 
night or  less  time;  and  that  fresh  grub  is  come  or  coming, 
and  in  j)leiity;  that  a  bit  of  civilization  will  drop  in 
among  us  and  crowd  out  the  damned  villainy  harboring 
and  governing  here.  If  only  to  stamj)  out  the  thefts  and 
the  lying,  we  could  worship  the  advent  of  a  new  element. 

We  will  get  door  locks  to  snub  the  thieves  and  wo  will 
get  newspajiers  to  outwit  the  liars.  It  is  a  common  re- 
mark in  tho  philosophy  of  the  day  that  st(\iling  might 
be  excusable  because  of  tho  gain  possible  of  some  good 
things  of  the  world,  but  that  lying  was  not  only  without 
ways  or  means,  but  as  low-lived  and  sinful  as  stealing. 

You  do  not  know,  my  good  friends,  what  there  is  in 
lying.  Eli  Perkins  might  go  to  the  Klondike  to  finish 
his  education,  just  as  some  of  our  doctors  go  to  Germany 
a  week  or  two  to  become  expert  or  finished  in  specialties. 
In  a  hap])y  experience  of  a  long,  lone  winter,  I  must 
vouch  for  great  things  that  may  be  accomplished  by  prac- 
tical application  of  heroic  lying.  In  the  first  place,  one 
must  needs  be  a  smontli,  ci'.sy  liar  in  order  to  avoid  ce-i- 
viction  in  the  matter  of  stealing — must  lie  out  of  it. 
Again,  he  must  lie  in  bns:n;>ss  (U'  he  can  neither  sell  nor 
buy  a  claim.  That  I  need  not  illustrate,  for  it  holds  good 
in  ^Montana  as  in  tho  Klondike. 

Then  the  long  winter  evening  can  only  bo  made  glo- 
rious by  tho  recital  and  the  receiving  of  the  wondrous  tales 
every  day  cleaned  up  from  camp  and  trail.     Early  last 


FT 


\l 


138 


THE  DECLINE  AND  FALL  OF 


i 


I  i 


winter  no  nowijpnpcr  miiK'  lo  r';ini|>,  and  in  ordfT  to  bor- 
row tlio  old  one  your  jiciLflihor  l)roii<^ht  in  tlic  siuiinicr- 
linio  you  nocdcd  lo  (l('[)o^il  ii  lialf  ouik  '  of  <lii>t  to  insure! 
its  return.  Rc'liabl(^  news,  ^'ood,  ^^'luiine — such  as  news- 
papers always  ^nve — was  searc(\,  so  wi'  had  lo  depend  uj)on 
the  men's  exehan^'e.  The  e.\ehan.i,'t'  was  all  that  broad 
and  strai;,dit  way  most  lively  and  palroni/ed,  in  the  chief 
part  of  the  city — (lu;  saloons,  the  varieties,  the  ;^'anilding 
dens.  Thrilling  scenes,  such  as  you  never  heard  of  out- 
ride oven,  were  daily  transacted  on  these  bulletin  boards 
in  Dawson,  in  caiuj),  and  on  trail.  For  every  cache 
robbed  one  man  was  killed  outrifjlit  and  one  was  reported 
to  have  died  in  the  hos])ital.  The  police  (1  should  be 
reverential  and  say  the  Xortbwest  ^lounted  Police)  were 
overworked  aiul  the  vigilantes  had  to  lend  aid.  Windy 
Diek's  famous  dog  team  of  huskies  went  uj)  to  the  French 
Gulch  to  bring  down  a  big  nugget  just  discovered — too 
big  for  two  men  to  carry.  Joe  Dalton,  who  went  out  on 
first  ico  with  $l(),()0()  in  dust,  was  waylaid  by  highway- 
men and  all  his  gang  was  nnirdered  save  one,  who  came 
back  to  tell  the  tale.  One  thousand  reindeer  were  on 
the  summit  bringing  luxuries  for  us  starving  miners  lux- 
uriating in  Dawson.     Hurrah! 

Finally  war  news  ])egan  to  come,  and  just  as  the  war 
collapsed  wo  were  having  Yankee  sentinels  posted  upon 
almost  every  fortification  in  the  civilized  world,  or  some 
New  York  gentleman's  private  yacht  just  outside  keep- 
ing the  harbor  bottled  up  with  a  nation's  great  fleet  in- 
side. Time  and  again  we  were  on  the  point  of  giving 
notice  to  that  glorious  military  organization,  the  N.  W. 
M.  P.  (which  means  the  Northwest  ^lounted  Police)  to 
go  home,  but  they  were  such  fat,  easy  fellows  one  did 
not  like  to  turn  them  out  in  the  cold.  They  never  would 
have  stood  the  trip  out  on  the  trail.     Besides,  they  ac- 


I  vv 


■•^ite*.     ,m>  ngi  «*..■«■  -^  . 


sAMur.n  sA  wnoNEf^,  m.  d. 


139 


e  war 
upon 
some 
keop- 
t  in- 
iving 
W. 
|e)  to 
did 
rould 
ac- 


tually onco  dill  ciipturo  a  iiiaii,  or  rather  lako  out  of  tlio 
hands  of  a  luoh  one  who  iuul  rohhcd  a  poor  minor's  cache 
and  jailed  him,  and  we  were  grateful — we  Kldorado  kings 
in  prospeetive!  JWit  1  hope  in  my  old  ago  to  write  a 
hook  on  "A  Wiiif.  r  llviMJug's  Tah'S,"  and  llioso  of  you 
who  arc  still  alive  >,  ill  rciid  iih.dit  what  1  cannot  toll  you 
to-night.  Only  li-^len  1o  me:  tlicro  must  some  good  things 
como  out  of  lying  on  the  Klondike  or  else  people  would 
tiro  of  it,  and  1  cannot  see  any  ahalement  since  tho  lirst 
days  in  which  I  was  an  active  memher. 

If  you  choose  to  look  at  these — stealing  and  lying — 
as  tho  comic  opera  of  our  winter's  amusement,  you  must 
allow  for  the  real  genuine  music,  the  real  o])era — our  eat- 
ing! No  matter  that  we  had  no  clam  Do  Santiago  sou;> 
or  canary  del  Filipinos  on  toast,  yet  we  had  reli>hes  th;:l 
would  nudvo  vellow-fever  germs  desert  one's  stomach  from 
sheer  overcrowding.  First  and  foremost,  hacon  and  l)ean>'. 
Why  bacon  and  beans?  Xot  because  they  are  child'  ar- 
ticles of  commerce,  but  l)ecauso  tluy  })an  out  more  bone, 
sinew,  and  caloric  to  tlu-  pound  tlian  anything  idse,  be- 
cause you  like  them,  because  they  are  convenient.  You 
may  know  a  man  in  Alaska  who  does  not  oat  bacon  and 
beans.  You  may  also  know  a  man  on  the  Klondike  wdio 
all  last  winter  wore  a  duster  and  a  straw  hat.  I  did. 
The  custom  of  my  pard  and  myself  was  to  i)ut  beans  and 
pig's  jowl  into  our  largest  cooking  pot  and  givt>  it  first 
phicc  on  tho  range  permanently.  Oik^  meal  d;ii]y  fi'iiu 
this  was  tho  written  law;  two  meals  was  common  whei'"  a 
special  blessing  would  not  befall  us  in  tlie  shape  of  ^^)\\\^i 
now  dish — a  fresh  iisli.  a  nieee  ui  caribou  or  salmon. 


All,  milord  Ba 


cull,    IjiiU 


Kliu, 


on 


ilic  Yuko 


n. 


To  thee  and  ihij  /.• 


iiinr 


d,  ,>n  h'lil! 


Yes,  my  dear  hacm,  Ir/sl  l:.:,;;i  dn  tJic  YukoUj 
You're  first  choice  in  cabin  or  trail. 


■,ii 


140 


THE  D FA' LINE  AND  FALL  OF 


I   \ 


Dried  fish  for  the  native,  fish  too  for  his  dog, 

lint  none  of  the  sad  trurh  for  me, 
l'n!c.<s  thou  dear  inorsri,  thoit  choice  of  the  hog, 

"Fis  fried  in.  'tis  fhivorcd  in  thee. 

The  saddle  and  tungiic  (jf  the  gatj  old  bull  moose 

Is  rclislt  for  J!tissian — not  uie; 
Nor  the  fricassee  game,  the  niinnint  wild  goose, 

Unless  fried  and  flavored  in  thee. 

Ah,  my  Lord  Bacon,  thou  chief  of  the  Yulcon, 

Before  thee  how  hone  and  mush; 
The  light  of  the  loindow  goes  out  on  the  Yulcon 

Lest,  Lord  Bacon,  you  keep  her  /lush. 

Oltl-timors  nnd  Sour  Doiip^lis  liad  ".-^onr  (l()U<jjli"  hroad, 
but  we  choccliokors  ^alisfiod  oursolvos  <liroii.Li;li  probation 
widi  bakinf^-powdcr  biscuit.  Tboso  woro  good,  bad,  and 
indilToront.  ^^'o  wcro  likowiso  indilTorout.  because  ev(>rv 
luorsel  of  tliesG  crowded  tbe  one  alicad  of  it  down  witli 
pueli  vebx'ity  as  to  make  taste  a  nivtb.  I'utter-  I  thank 
Ibe  Lord  ilie  two  obi  commercial  companies  kept  good 
butter  and  never  let  it  run  above  $''2. 50  per  pound.  Sugar 
was  good,  a?id  at  store  prices  cost  30  cents.  At  starva- 
tion point,  when  outfits  were  tbrown  upon  tbe  market  by 
retreating  cbeeeliokers,  tbe  price  of  sugar  was,  with  tlie 
wliolo  pack-meat,  rice,  flour,  salt,  fruit,  cornmeal,  every- 
tbing — $1  per  pound.  Oatmeal  and  rice  go  witbout  say- 
ing; everybody  bad  it ;  everybody  bad  condensed  milk, 
tbougb  Ibis  s]-)ring  some  paid  $3  per  can  for  it;  and  T 
think  everybody  had  dried  fruit.  Some  had  ham,  some 
canned  meats,  canned  fruits;  some  luxurious  fellows  had 
sweet  potatoes,  peas,  tomatoes,  salmon,  fresh  mackerel, 
with  tomato  sauce,  Vienna  sausage.     And  why   did   we 


« 


SAMUEL  SA  wnoyf':ft.  m.  d. 


141 


starve?  Why,  wo  did  not.  You  must  iveall  what  I  told 
you — lyins  \viis  ^  'i'li'  'H'^  *»'^  ^hc  Klondiko,  and  those  peo- 
]iK'  who  went  out  liad  it  pat.  The  fcHovv  who  was  home- 
jjji'k,  or  Irl'l  a  girl  hchiud,  or  was  weakened  aiul  disap- 
pointi'd  hirause  the  Sour  i)(iu;.;hs  had  |iii  krd  up  all  the 
iiu,c.i,'ots  Iriim  the  stroots  of  hawsoii,  luust  have  an  excuse 
U<v  t;oining  out,  and  starvation  is  sui'h  a  thrilling,  grow- 
ing horror,  such  a  sympathetic  one,  that  they  could  not  do 
as  well  for  themselves  with  any  otiier  suhjcct. 

However,  if  many  had  not  gone  and  if  the  government 
had  not  invited  many  down  tiie  river  to  storage  points, 
some  of  us  may  have  had  to  oat  our  muck  lucks.  Aside 
from  this,  many  j)eo])le  infiH'ted  with  the  fright  hought, 
stole,  or  hogged  lots  of  gruh  to  add  to  an  alri'ady  tilled 
cache,  and  met  spring  with  more  than  tlu^ir  share.  I  re- 
peat, all  hands  mIio  could  j)ay  for  food  found  plenty  at 
their  command.  All  winti'r  we  could  huy  fresh  heef  and 
mutton,  shi[)i)ed  down  the  river  early  in  the  fall,  and  the 
Indians  kept  a  pretty  good  supply  of  moose  coming  in  all 
the  time  at  only  $1  per  j»ound.  Of  course  there  is  noth- 
ing in  all  this  hill  of  gruh  to  make  you  oulsid*;  sing  a 
Christmas  carol,  but  mind,  you  were  not  on  the  Yukon  or 
you  would  have  chanted  a  Te  Dcuni  with  us.  I  can  recall 
when  the  Methodist  parson  would  say:  "You  must  pray 
without  ceasing  or  else  ho  damiu^d."  On  the  Klondike  wo 
nnist  oat  without  ceasing  or  else  be  starved.  Tlu'  luxury 
of  eating — anything,  everything — makes  life  worth  living 
here,  even  though  no  nuggets  fill  u})  our  empty  cans.  And 
you  can  guess  that  no  ingenuity  was  s|)ared  in  jireparing 
the  feasts.  In  camp,  in  the  diggings,  I  heard  miners 
dispute  precedence  as  cook.  Without  New  Orleans  mo- 
lasses they  would  make  grand  old  gingerbread ;  without 
aggs  they  cooked  magnificent  ]niddings;  without  sour  milk 
or  cream  will  they  bake  wondrous  waffles.     1  am  in  the 


143 


THE  Dicrrixm  axd  fall  of 


/ 


liul)it  of  tclliii;,'  of  my  M<'i;;;lilM)r  who  from  oiip  !)U(  kct  of 
.«>nr  (|r)ii;,'li  l.'ii<l  ilic  fiiutulalinii  for  live  p)o(l  (li,>-lu'S  of 
wliicli  I  partook  one  nu'iil.  In  faifli,  tliou;,'li,  I  must  coji- 
fcss,  (lie  liiNurv  in  f'ntiii;^  is  due  to  llic  smart,  liri^^ht.  coM 
wcathrr  and  llio  j^food  cliiiiMtc  Fortunately  it  favors 
oiu;'^  di^^cstion  with  his  a])])('tit(',  and  I  can  commciul  to 
you  luiscrahh'  dyspeptics,  <d'  whom  I  can  mark  scores  iind 
scores,  ji  winter  on  the  ^■^klln.  I  wi.~h  to  say  this:  Tho 
oUl-time  rcsideids  of  the  Yukon,  most  u[  whom  have 
drawn  to  Dawson  and  tliese  di,Lr^nn;,'s,  had  any  and  all 
thinf^s  in  store  tliat  transjiortution  can  mana;^'o,  and  I  nto 
a  Cliristmas  dinner  that  wouhl  do  justice  to  tho  outsido 
witli  one  of  these  families. 

Possihly  as  I  <ro  alon;^'  I  liad  bettor  make  work  a  sub- 
ject in  tho  discussion,  for  if  one  is  not  ready  and  willin;^ 
to  work  lie  Inid  bettor  at  once  steal  somcthin.i,'  and  ;,mvo 
hims(df  up  to  the  X.  W.  M.  1*.,  who  will  send  him  down 
tho  Yukon  to  American  territory;  then  if  th.e  winter  is 
severe  the  <;overnment  nuiy  provide  for  him.  In  th(>  city 
of  Dawson  my  ])ard  utilized  tho  forenoons,  wliih>  T  ki'pt 
house,  to  sled  tlie  wood;  tliis  lie  found  on  the  hillside 
within  a  mile.  I  <xavo  him  tho  house  to  keej)  in  tho  after- 
noon and  T  sawed  the  wo(;d.  If  this  was  not  a  daily  job  it 
was  not  less  than  alternate  days'  work.  Tlonsokeojiinfr 
aside  from  cookinp:  was  not  very  tedious.  Sweo])in<T  mi^dit 
have  IxHMi  commended,  hut  brooms  are  worth  a  half  ounce 
of  dust.  Finally,  when  T  became  owner  of  a  piece  of  a 
broom  T  had  to  lend  it  to  so  many  neif;hl)ors  that  1  needed 
to  economi/^e  in  my  own  use  to  save  it.  Water  '■'■■  jr.*  - 
time  nnist  all  be  carried  from  tho  Ynko'i  Uiv  o       .>r 

bow  far  away  one  lives.     And  tbo  1  iht       e 

become  veritable  TJobocca  wells,  only  •  nevi  see  .my 
"Relx^cca  drawin^::  water.  A  common  water  sup'ily  is  draw- 
ing sled-loads  of  ice  home  and  drinking  ice.     m  summer- 


I 


.*►* 


SA }rcF.i.  sA  wnoxrs,  .v.  /). 


It3 


time,  with   tlio  jidvrnt  of  suii.-Iiiim  aii«l--\vi' 


^.'ly   mos- 


quitoes I'or  l)iilt('i  llits— llici'f  toiiu'  spriii^/s  from  the  liill- 
fiido  at  OIK'  fii<I  of  tnuii,  wliicli  wo  call  tlio  r-'.-iilcnt  cud 
hocauso  people  ll-ick  ihero  fur  t'onvctiieiice.  Our  water  ib 
good,  enpefi.illy  in  lonijiarisoii  uitli  our  heer. 

As  for  w;i;,n's,  it  was  a  maltir  (d'  capacity.  A  good 
man  dcaliiii;  faro  ;?ot,  >f!'.M>  \)vv  day.  I  know  a  /^'irl  wlio 
did  houseU(>(«pin;,'  for  .$100  jxr  tui-nlh,  yrt  I  know  an- 
other (ell  a  iii;in  lo  *MIil  awav  wiil  vour  $.')()  u  week — 
washin^r's  ^^food  enoii;;li  I'nr  rne  at  ^l."!  a  day." 
Miners  ^ot  from  ^l.'.T)  to  $!..'')0  per  hour,  hut  it,  is  sehloui 
lio  gets  in  more  than  ei^'liL  hours  a  day  in  \\inl»'r-tiin»' 
and  he  must  lliid  his  own  "^'ruh  stake.  It  is  expected  of 
every  man  iiol  a  fool  lo  la  id  in  Pawson  with  his  year's 
gruh,  hut  of  course  olTn'ials  r<hould  have  j)osted  such  no- 
lice  out>ide;  then  some  of  us  would  not  have  made'  the 
mistake  of  .ijjettin;^'  there  liuii;,'ry.  liut  the  wise  ones,  as 
n  rule,  rushed  oil'  to  tlu<  di'''Mn;:fs  and  took  lavs  or  leases 


in  mines  ali-<'adv  owiied,   or  else  staked   claims  an( 


1  nil 


immediately  (o  work.  One  would  find  a  iroUey-ear  pilot 
nin  up  his  windlass  crank  uilh  the  Mime  drxterity  of  his 
old  lrad(^;  or  an  ele(  I  riciaii  adju>liii;^  the  li^ht  of  liirf 
widow  in  niucli  liiinior  and  paiieiice;  and  a  doctor  mi^dd, 
be  prowlin.Lr  around  the  camps  sti|)plyin;(  wood  as  thou^di 
pome  di>(a!it   day  he  nii;jjht  hope   for  reward.     Lawyers? 


Oh. 


no. 


Lav.vii's  are  hrokers  and  (h-alers  in   r(\d  estate 


and  miiiin^Lr  ai.d  in  minei's  thi'iiisflvcs,  and  ilicy  stay  in 
town  watehin<,^  oj)portunit ies.  Once  oit  a  lime,  when  days 
were  fjettinf;  lon<^,  when  dan^xers  on  the  trail  were  lessen- 
ing. inir!;ht  have  hecn  seen  moving  up  the  Klondike  and 
over  Tjonanza  a  conspicuous  fli^nire.  He  liad  on  a  ^'ukoti 
cap  v/ith  its  mighty  ear-tufls  hristlinpj  and  hrusliing 
lliro;i:.'li  tlu^  frost;  a  fforsreoiis  mottled  parlcec  of  fai)ulous 
]}!:ce — the  finest  fur — shroiul(nl  ahont  firm  shoulders  and 


144 


TUE  DECLINE  AND  FALL  OF 


stanch  limbs;  gaudy  colored  and  elegant  gartered  Ger- 
man stockings  about  bis  calves,  with  brilliant  beaded  moc- 
casins on  W('ll-P([uared  feet.  Siwash  (loorgo,  is  it,  who 
discovered  Bonanza?  Oh,  no;  greater  than  ho.  Big 
Alex,  who  owns — well,  no;  ho  goes  like  the  rest  of  us. 
Swift  Water  Bill?     Skookum  Jim?     No,  none  of  these 

Eldorado  kings.     What!  that's  your  old  pard  from  , 

some  one  says !  I  don't  think  it.  I  never  saw  him  out 
of  town  before  if  it  is  ho. 

MIXIXO   ON"   THE    KLONDIKE. 


fe    i 


l<  , 


I 


The  modes  of  mining  amount  to  about  this:  You  first 
get  your  mine  or  else  a  lay  on  some  one  else's  mine.  You 
dig  the  moss  o(T  and,  if  possible,  pick  and  shovel  the  area 
of  a  shaft  to  some  depth.  One  can  pick  through  the  strata 
known  as  muck ;  it  rcsemi)ies  hard  blue  clay.  It  may  bo 
two  or  ten  feet  thick.  Below  is  gravel,  much  like  gravel 
expected  or  found  in  jilacer  diggings  in  Montana.  It 
may  be  two  or  twenty  feet  deep.  Gravel  lies  on  bed  rock. 
One's  shaft  may  have  to  be  from  five  to  thirty  feet  deep, 
(i ravel  seems  to  be  quite  iiioperativo  with  pick,  unless 
burned.  So  miners  fill  great  armfuls  of  wood  in  this 
shaft,  whicli  when  burned  out  has  thawed  four  or  six 
inches  of  the  gravel  in  the  bottom;  when  the  smoke  has 
cleared  out  the  pick,  shovel,  and  windlass  do  the  rest. 
Two  men  at  work  run  two  shafts,  so  as  to  bo  busy  at  one 
while  the  other  burns.  If  you  strike  no  pay  dirt  before 
reaching  bed  rock  you  try  a  new  place.  The  gravel  may 
pay  three  feet  above  bed  rock  or  only  a  fraction  of  a  foot 
Its  pay  decreases  from  bed  rock  up  in  richness;  the  pay 
streak  may  be  a  foot  or  fifty  feet  in  width;  it  may  be 
straight,  regular,  or  pockety.  It  is  not  wise  to  count  upon 
a  million  in  one's  mine  until  it  is  out  on  the  dump.     I 


i\\\ 


H.4.: 


SAMUEL  BA  WB0NE8,  M.  D. 


145 


know  people  on  the  Klondike  who  want  a  million  and  did 
not  get  it.  Tliey  had  hopes  they  might  get  it,  but  still 
did  not.  They  had  in  sight  big  pay,  which  when  wayjied 
still  v.'ould  not  come  up  to  a  million;  of  eourse  next  tiine 
it  might  do  better.  Well,  I  almost  forgot  to  finish  the 
mining  before  the  washing.  If  one  strikes  pay  at  the  end 
of  his  shaft  he  still  burns,  picks,  and  shovels;  he  drifts  in 
the  manner  of  mining  everywhere  else.  All  he  dumps 
outside  on  the  ground,  and  some  of  these  dumps  rise  up  to 
be  as  big  as  log  cabins.  Almost  the  middle  of  May  the 
summer  sun  smiles  u])on  us  with  heat  and  fervor,  and 
these  dumps  melt.  The  miner,  with  his  whole  winter's 
hope  deferred  to  this  date,  calls  his  trusty  slaves  to  him 
and  they  begin  sluicing — much  like  the  Chinamen  do  in 
Montana.  They  build  a  long  box,  twenty  or  one  hun- 
dred feet;  they  shovel  this  dump  into  it  from  day  to  day 
as  the  ground  thaws ;  they  run  a  good  stream  of  water 
through  it  and  wash  the  gold  clean.  II(>re  is  where  great 
miners  are  brought  down  to  common  groveling — I  mean 
Eldorado  kings  and  big  chiefs  and  Skonkum  dukes  are 
brought  down  to  hard  work  and  ingenious  ways.  "No, 
thank  you,  gentlemen.  I  will  let  you  hold  my  sweater. 
I  will  pick  up  these  nuggets.  Please  pass  me  the  sacks.'' 
And  tlien  that  12  per  cent,  royalty — $12,000  on  every 
$100,000 — how  will  he  manage  that?  Indeed,  I  do  not 
know,  but  I  will  leave  it  to  him  for  that.  I  think  he  has 
it  studied  out.  From  one  to  two  months  are  consumed 
for  cleaning  up,  washing  the  dumps ;  after  that  several 
months  are  occupied  in  various  ways,  getting  wood,  pros- 
pecting for  new  claims,  recreation. 

INDUSTRIES. 

The  industries   and   home   talent   of  Dawson  and   the 
Klondike  are  various.     Mining  first,  of  course;  and  as  the 


if 

\ 


1 

\ 


I. 


146 


THE  DECLINE  AND  FALL  OF 


i\ 


\\ 


./t 


minor  of  the  period  could  not  exist  without  his  gambling, 
the  gambling  halls,  or  parlors,  if  you  choose,  rank  next 
in  importance  and  prosperity.  I  need  not  stop  to  talk 
about  them,  as  you  know  how  it  is  yourself.  A  dealer  in 
one  of  these  places  reported  a  daily  average  clean-up  at 
the  tables  and  bar  of  from  $1,500  to  $'^,000. 

Your  outside  pajiers  were  during  the  winter  making 
famous  one  Swift  Water  Bill.  Bill  stayed  out  too  long 
in  the  hands  of  his  friends;  when  he  came  back  his  sack 
was  empty  and  ho  was  thence  only  "Still  V»'ater  Willie." 

But  men  and  women  make  money  in  more  ways  than 
one.  The  two  old  trading  companies  deal  in  every  con- 
ceivable kind  of  material  from  gaudy  Itidlan  calicoes  to 
mouse-traps.  Six  or  a  dozen  horses  wore  at  Dawson  all 
winter  with  hay  at  $100  per  ton  and  meal  at  20  cents  to 
$1  per  pound.  Ten  dollars  per  hour  for  a  team  was  the 
penalty,  and  they  were  busy.  Dogs  are  legal  tender. 
They  carried  grub  and  lumber  up  the  gulches  the  whole 
winter  season,  going  where  horses  could  not  and  working 
better  and  cheaper.  Without  dogs  the  camp  would  have 
been  helpless.  Dogs  would  make  a  lecture  of  its  own. 
No  one  likes  dogs  as  a  subject,  but  they  must  be  endured — 
just  as  the  cook  or  stepmother.  They  howl  in  four  or 
five  dilTerent  languages  at  once;  they  exercise  the  cussed- 
ness  of  the  several  different  species — wolf,  coyote,  real 
dog,  from  which  they  have  their  being.  You  learn  to 
endure  their  cry,  their  mourn'ng,  their  howl  all  in  one; 
but  when  you  must  take  forty  steps  around  about  the  dogs 
lying  in  the  streets  to  gain  just  twenty  steps,  then  you 
wish  there  wore  no  dogs,  and  v^how  you  must  guard  even 
hot  things  on  your  stove  lest  the  dogs  steal  them,  then 
you  pray  for  the  era  of  reindeer.  The  good  things  com- 
ing out  of  dogs,  however,  seem  to  outweigh  all  this,  and 
we  must  continue  to  say  our  prayers  for  the  good  health 


•\\s 


SAMUEL  SAWBONES,  M.  D. 


147 


of  the  dogs,  just  a?  wo  do  for  tlio  good  lioallh  and  long 
life  of  tlio  (Juecn  and  Iut  imiiici'ous  faniilv. 

]\Ioc'hanics  of  all  clasM's  found  soinctliiiig  to  do  or  made 
work  for  themselves.  One  made  a  rustic  chair — only  '$13 ; 
another  a  rustic  broom  from  a  willow  hi'ush.  C'ahiiis  grew 
all  winter.  A  simple  little  |)laniiig  mill  kept  at  woik  all 
winter,  and  this  summer  three  sawmills  were  scattered 
through  the  town.  Ijumher  had  been  selling  up  to  late 
summer  for  $-i()0  ])er  thousand;  a  downward  teudency, 
however,  when  I  left.  The  coldest  day  of  the  season 
came  in  the  midst  of  my  house-building,  yet  the  interest 
and  energy  of  the  enterprise  made  it  possible  to  continue. 
I  think  1  have  said  ei.ough  about  work,  for  when  you  go 
there  you  will  he  taking  my  advice  and  rush  right  otl  into 


the  mining  world. 


PASTIME. 


Pastime?  Why,  of  course  it  was  not  all  work.  If  not 
mining  or  employment  at  some  service,  we  wasted  as 
much  time  as  possible  sleeping  and  eating.  Then  wo 
would  write  letters  home,  even  though  we  knew  not  if  a 
home  was  left  us.  Writing  was  by  no  means  made  glori- 
ous last  winter,  by  the  absence  of  oil  lamps.  Oil  was  im- 
possible to  the  cheechokers  and  only  possible  to  the  sa- 
loons and  music  halls  at  a  rate  of  $40  per  gallon.  Tallow 
candles  were  $75  per  box,  and  most  of  us  had  to  resort  to 
what  in  kindly  terms  we  called  the  widow — a  tin  can 
with  bacon  grease  and  cotton  wick.  Sometimes  this 
widow  would  assert  itself  and  partake  of  all  the  freaks  and 
frailties  of  her  species.  She  would  let  her  light  so  shine 
as  to  please  her  most  worthless  or  cruel  master,  and  again 
would  go  into  lone  darkness  from  the  midst  of  most 
charming  and  entertaining  associates.  Ah,  yes,  she  was 
the  glory  of  the  long  winter  nights  and  likewise  the  com- 


I 


\s\ 


\  ^ 


mm 


\i  '.^Jt' 


'll 


148 


THE  DECLINE  AND  FALL  OF 


miscralion  of  hor  most  dovotod  aitcMidants.  But  we  had 
anotlicr  name  for  licr  when  loo  hiid.  Worn  to  tlie  last 
thread  of  patience,  I  invested  .$•.'.■>  in  a  l>ox  of  candles,  they 
having  dropped  to  this  respectable  j)rice  nj)on  the  ap- 
proach of  Ion*,'  days.  Wo  had  no  football,  no  afternoon 
teas,  no  elections;  hut  wo  had  prize-fights,  church  fes- 
tivals, and  auction  sales. 

And  then  do  no  funny  things  Iinppen  on  tlie  Klondike — 
you  have  no  real  fun,  no  real  good  times?     Oh,  yes.     We 
go  out  fishing  on  Sunday,  and  in  season  we  can  raise  a 
party  to  go  out  after  cranberries  and  rasi)berries.     Yes, 
I  recall  a  warning  a  mother  was  giving  to  licr  children: 
"iS^ow,  don't  you  go  up  on  that  mountain  to-day.    They 
haven't  gathered  near  all  that  man  uj)  yet  that  had  the 
fight  with  the  bear."     That  was  in  our  neighbor  town — 
I^ousetown.       Wild   cranberries,   raspberries  and  huckle- 
berries are  rather  plenty.     There  are  seldom  any  good,  in- 
teresting  fights,   because   every   saloon    has  one  or  more 
good,  healthy  mounted  police,  and  if  they  did  not  pick 
up  a  disorderly  they  never  would  have  the  honor  of  doing 
anything.     Then,   of   course,   going  to   the   post-office   is 
fun.     Our  first  govennnent  mail  came  in  about  IMarcli  1. 
Some  people  were  becoming  anxious  by  that  time  to  hear 
from  wife  or  kids  or  sweethearts.     Haunting  the  post- 
office  for  these  we  found  a  notice  posted:       "The  mail 
will   be  ready    for  distribution    in   five   days."     Then   we 
waited  at  homo  five  days.     There  was  ahout  as  much  mail 
as  conies  into  a  town  of  15,000  inhabitants  every  day.    At 
the  appointed  time  we  were  all  there.     The  line  wound 
around  the  harracks,  rn  Second  Street,  down  First  Ave- 
nue, and  became  lost  somewhere.     All  the  miners  in  the 
district  heard  a  mail  had  come  in  and  were  there.     Of 
course  summer  had  not  come  yet,  and  this  getting  the 
mail  was  the  matter  of  the  survival  of  the  fittest.     After 


*♦ 


,_  Nj 


SAMUEL  8A  WB0NE8.  M.  D. 


149 


IS 


three  days  T  found  myself  in  the  presence  of  a  post-ofTice 
clerk;  there  were  aljout  foiK  of  them,  all  fine,  healthy, 
husky  fellows,  mounted  police.  A  Iclkr  for  iMr.  Sour 
Dough,  sir?  lie  look  down  a  bundle  of  letters  bcixiiniiii'^ 
Do,  unwound  a  long  twine  tied  around  hoth  side.-,  aiid 

began     his     search.       "Doolittle,     Doty,     I     .lahiic '' 

"There,  there;  that  was  Dough,  sir."  Jle  looked  bit  k, 
and  sure  enough  a  letter  for  Sour  Dough.  1  called  him 
back  thus  several  times  and  got  two  letters.  Then  he 
slowly  and  firndy  bound  up  the  package,  tied  twice  arouiul 
with  a  bow-knot,  placed  it  in  the  box  Do,  and  waited  on 
the  next.  Oh,  I  tell  you  there  is  fun  going  to  the  Dawson 
post-office. 

Then  young  folks  have  their  amusements,  too.  In  the 
early  day  we  had  the  pleasure  of  going  to  church.  One 
sad  night  we  had  a  lire.  Brother  Young,  the  Presby- 
terian missionary,  hatl  a  nice  church,  and  he  devoted  the 
upstairs  to  his  swell  members  for  lodgings.  One  night, 
between  them  or  because  of  them  or  some  unaccountable 
reason,  an  upturned  stove  would  not  get  back  on  its  feet, 
and  the  devout  tenants  tumbled  downstairs,  only  to  leave 
Brother  Young  churchless.  Shortly  afterward  the  Cath- 
olic church,  a  nice  little  monument  of  our  old  friend  Pat 
Galvin,  startled  us  by  burning.  We  never  knew  why 
churches  cannot  stand  that  atmosphere.  The  ^lethodists 
are  trying  it  this  year,  and  we  await  with  interest  the  re- 
sult. The  Salvationists  are  likewise  there  building  bar- 
racks.    I  will  bet  on  both  of  these  in  a  fair  wrestle  with 


the 


likers. 


Klondi 

There  is  only  one  bicycle  in  camp,  but  we  have  lots  of 
dog  sleds.     Just  like  at  homo,  you  go  swell  or  you  go 


every-day 


stvle.     The  v 


oiniLT  i:':;in  v, 


ho  takes  his  best  girl 
out  in  his  every-day  sled  i-u'is  ai  lli*-  ir.'c-pole,  just  behind 
the  dogs.     lie  must  look  back  to  sec  her,  but  has  no  chance 


I     I 


150 


THE  DECLINE  AND  FALL  OF 


\\ 


I,' 


Vf        1 


to  talk.  Tlio  su-cll  slcigli  has  the  goc-polo  behind  and  the 
lover  must  run  after,  lie  can  talk  in  his  girl's  ear,  but 
ho  cannot  see  her,  except  the  crown  of  her  bi^^  Yukon  hood. 
On  Ibe  lionanza  trail  jusi  a  f(nv  miles  out  ol'  town  oik;  of 
these  swell  e(iuij)a;,fes  with  seven  dot;s,  all  hu.kies,  wa- 
fijal loping  along,  wliilc  down  the  grade  came  a  freight 
team,  an  equally  good  outfit  of  about  seven  Malainuth 
dogs.  Dick  Seldom,  the  driver,  peered  into  the  l.jod  com- 
ing Joward  him  instf.id  of  mushing  on  his  dogs;  and  the 
youth,  talking  nice  things  through  her  bonnet — a  massive 
bundle  of  furs — forgot  to  mush  his  dogs.  The  two  teams 
came  opposite.  Dick  still  peered  into  the  forbidden  hood 
facing  him,  and  the  other  fellow  stared  liercely  at  Dick 
f(jr  his  impudence.  The  dogs  sto})ped.  Two  saucy  ones 
growled;  then  all  was  lost.  In  a  moment  these  two  teams 
— dogs,  luirness,  aiul  sleds — were  balled  Uji  into  a  great 
mass,  with  two  maniacs  jiomuling  the  breath  out  of  them- 
selves to  get  at  head  or  tail.  Finally  they  were  unraveled 
and  our  sweetheart  came  out  as  good  as  new.  Iler  parkee 
of  caribou  skins  and  her  thick  fur  hood  have  suffered  with 
the  fur  of  the  huskies  and  the  ^lalamuths,  but  they  saved 
her  precious  self.     Loads  of  fun  that,  she  said  afterward. 


M 


THE   MINIXO   DISTRICT. 

The  Klondike  mining  district  is  a  sub-division  of  the 
Yukon  mining  district.  Tiately  all  that  country  is  formed 
info  a  new  political  district  called  the  Yukon  Territory. 
The  present  letter  address  to  the  Klondikers  is  Dawsrm, 
Yukon  Territory.  The  Klondike  and  the  Indian  rivers 
have  their  head?  ;n  the  Rocky  ^lountains,  as  nearly  as 
can  be  guessed  (for  no  surveys  are  made)  one  hundred 
miles  from  their  mouths  in  the  Yukon  and  in  a  south- 
easterly direction.     They  may  be  forty  miles  apart,  nearly 


\i. 


SAMUEL  SAWBONES,  M.  D. 


151 


the 


piirallt'l  from  source  to  niontli.  The  jjre^ent  mining  dis- 
trict, called  the  Klondike  in  ;^riit'inl,  is  Inculcd  and  pnis- 
jH'cti'd  for  about,  sixty  miles  \\\)  I'i'din  tlic  Yukon,  and  is 
almost  conliiied  within  the  boundaries  of  these  two  rivers, 
neitiier  of  which  has  more  than  indid'erent  bar  di<:";,Mii^"s. 
Flowing  into  the  Klondike  are  the  Jionanza,  J'^ldorado, 
Hunker,  All  CJold,  Too  Mncli  (Jold,  IJear  Creek,  and  in- 
numerable branches.  Flowing  in  a  diieetly  opposite  di- 
rection into  the  Indian  River  are  the  Doininioii,  Sul})hur, 
Quartz,  Ophir,  Nino  Mile,  Fureka,  some  others,  and 
branches.  In  addition  are  a  nundjer  of  sjual!  creeks,  and 
into  all  are  numerous  streams  of  only  a  lev.'  miles  called 
pups.  Three  nnles  from  its  mouth  the  i>onaii/a,  heading 
thirty  or  forty  miles  nearly  south,  em})ties  into  the  Klon- 
dike; fourteen  miles  from  this  mouth  Fldorado,  with  its 
source  ten  miles  soutli,  joins  the  llonanza. 

The  first  big  finds  to  excite  the  stampcv^"  to  the  Klon- 
dike district  were  on  Bonanza  Creek'.  The  pot-rattlers 
of  the  stampede,  tlic  lazy  man,  the  sluggard  coming  in 
after  Bonanza  was  all  s;vallowed  uj),  j'eai'cd  the  odium  of 
being  claindess  and  staked  on  this  side  issue,  l']ldorado. 
They  should  have  called  it  Last  Chance.  ICldorado  fig- 
ured for  some  time  as  a  wild  cat.  One  origimd  chiimer 
danced  a  jig  through  the  whole  night  upon  receiving  $100 
for  his  claim,  and  one,  in  cond)iiialion  witli  some  friendly 
wretch,  put  up  a  coniidence  game  on  a  Swede  named  An- 
derson. Anderson  had  $100.  They  theret'ore  made  An- 
derson drunk  as  a  stepping-stone  to  his  fortune.  I  do 
not  know  if  Anderson  was  fond  of  drink ;  L  only  know  that 
they  made  him  di'unk.  Vv'hen  drunk  the  owner  of  this 
claim  made  him  a  deed,  signed  it  for  him  and  themselves, 
took  his  $400  as  pa^iu'-nt,  and  abandoned  claim  and  An- 
derson. Anderson  waked  from  his  delirium  into  his  new 
delusion.     He  cried  for  his   monev,   but   the  confidence 


1 

: 


vt 


>j   .   1 


152 


THE  DECLINE  AND  FALL  OF 


mon  made  their  bond  as  strong  as  tlio  law  of  the  Modes 
iiiul  Persians.  Poor  Andorsou  sought  the  solitude  of  his 
( iaini  'way  up  on  Kldorado,  that  he  could  weep  unnio- 
leslcd.  The  sum  and  substance  of  this  confidence  game 
is  that  Anderson's  claim  will  have  panned  him  out  at 
least  a  million  dollars,  and  he  doesn't  cry  about  it  a  bit 
any  more.  Discovery  Claim,  on  Bonanza,  is  about  thir- 
teen miles  from  its  mouth,  about  one  mile  from  the  mouth 
of  Eldorado.  It  originally  belongi'd  to  ^Mr.  George  Cor- 
mack  and,  strange  to  say,  still  bflongs  to  him.  And  he 
discovered  it?  No,  he  did  not.  His  wife  discovered  it, 
but  he  approj)riated  all  the  honor  and  glory  and  perqui- 
sites of  a  big  event,  which  is  here  a  long  continuous  round 
of  hootch  and  other  beverages.  (.^ormack's  wife  is  a 
squaw,  and  how  she  discovered  gold  on  the  ]jonanza  is 
more  than  I  could  discover.  The  story  is  something  to 
the  effect  that  she  was  wading  througli  Bonanza  as  a  plaus- 
ible way  of  washing  her  feet  and  that  she  came  out  with 
nuggets  sticking  boiween  her  toes.  It  could  bo  possible 
for  nuggets  to  stick  between  one's  toes,  but  could  not  be 
probable  that  a  squaw  would  wash  her  feet;  therefore  I 
abandon  such  ideas  and  drop  the  search. 

For  about  twelve  claims  below  Discovery,  on  Bonanza, 
al)out  all  are  good  pay  claims,  worth  from  $100,000  to 
$.'iOO,000  each.  From  No.  13  to  No.  100  below  there  are 
only  a  few  good-paying  claims,  while  only  a  limited  share 
are  actually  paying.  Some  of  Bonanza's  biggest  pay 
claims  are  above  Discovery.  I  am  not  exaggerating  to 
say  several  will  pan  out  $1,000,000,  quite  a  number  will 
pan  out  as  much  as  $100,000,  and  the  greater  sliare  will 
pay  above  wages  up  as  far  as  No.  45 ;  above  No.  45  is  little 
or  nothing. 

Eldorado  has  a  continuous  pay  streak  from  its  mouth, 
which  is  Discovery  Claim,  up  to  No.  30 — only  a  few  ex- 


! 


i\it 


»J>  ».«.■!■. 


■  t7»     •♦*t"-A.»*»i-:V^'":..fl«'«/-i*4*(  ^- 


k  '^'"'^l^tmitjmmmmmti^MmmMi^i^^^^^^ 


i.V-h*.v.i»^'i;.»»i 


5ag5EaBiaMuaiiu..u^-. .  -m 


■^tr* -"•' ••^     •-•  T*-"^-' •-'"■'r^^^ -♦  <V--^  •*    r*-'-*'**  *-'-| 


SAMUEL  SA  W BONES,  M.  D. 


153 


to 
arc 

inro 


ith, 
ex- 


ceptional claims.  I  scarcely  dare  compulo  their  total 
value,  but  may  average  tliem  at  $r)(>,00()  to  .$-20(),()00  yearly 
output  for  three  to  five  years.  From  Xo.  .^0  to  No.  40 
are  a  few  hi^  claims,  hut  likewise  a  numher  of  blanks; 
above  No.  40  few,  if  any,  claims  pay  above  expenses  at 
present  way  of  work. 

This  summer  it  is  being  demonstrat'^d  Ihal  Kldorado 
and  Bonanza  each  have  innumerable  paying  claims  on  tln^ 
benches,  and  by  the  present  time  every  foot  of  ground 
from  rim  rock  to  top  range  is  staked  as  bench  claims.  Of 
course  that  does  not  mean  that  every  one  of  these  claims 
are  paying  investments,  but  I  know  it  from  observation 
that  a  big  number  are  paying  from  wages  to  big  pay.  I 
know,  too,  that  after  a  free  and  compk'te  [jrosjject  of  all 
these  claims  arc  made  the  world  will  open  its  eyes  at  the 
output. 

Eldorado  railoh  and  Bonanza  have  streams  emptying 
into  them,  nsnally  called  pups,  but  tlio  history  of  these 
pnps  is  that  they  do  not  pay,  unless  perchance  two  to  four 
claims  counting  from  the  mouth.  One  trii)utary  of  El- 
dorado, French  Gulch,  paid  little  or  nothing  in  what  wo 
term  creek  claims,  but  some  fabulous  bencli  claims  were 
discovered  on  it  this  summer.  It  was  quite  possible  to 
wash  out  $1,000  a  day  with  a  rocker. 

Emptying  into  the  Klondike  nine  miles  above  the  mouth 
of  Bonanza  is  Hunker  Creek,  coming  thirty  miles  fron< 
the  southeast.  It  is  so  large  that  no  effort  i>5  made  to 
mine  on  it  for  ten  miles  from  its  mouth.  From  that  (\r,. 
75)  up  to  Discovery  a  numl)er  of  claims  were  worked 
which  panned  out  big  and  wliieh  stand  in  the  market  at 
from  $50,000  to  $100,000,  but  as  yet  the  majority  of 
Hunker  claims  have  not  paid  well ;  one  cannot  say  if 
from  want  of  prospecting  or  from  barrenness. 

I  may  have  failed  to  explain  what  I  mean  by  prospect- 


V-  -sj 


154 


TUK  LIX'LIXE  ASD  FALL  OF 


lAt 


I  *;/ 


in;:^.  In  iho  first  plncp,  wc  pay  prnspcotmp  ■R-li^n  wo  hunt 
tlio  C'Oimlry  ovor  to  disfovci'  claiins;  secondly,  \\v  say 
]ir  i-pocliiiff  wIk'Ii  wo  liavo  n  claim  and  work  it  \n  open  up 
and  discover  if  apy  pay  is  in  it  atid  where  uiul  h.»w  imicli. 
Owners  of  twenty  claims  ahove  I)iscov;'ry  u;:  ilankcr 
claim  they  liave  ^'</od  pay;  .sotno  claim  l)i;^^  pay.  J  caimot 
vinich  for  it.  All  (luld,  a  creek  ion  to  iwi'iily  mili's  long, 
is  a  tributary  of  Klondike,  orn]ityin;jj  inio  it  )me  miles 
nhovo  Hunker.  .Just  before  I  left  tin  re  I  saw  ;oine  abo- 
Iiitely  reliable  clean-ii]is  from  All  (lold,  and  I  am  satis- 
fied that  next  year  it  will  report  a  series  of  biu-  claims. 
.\I1  (Jold  was  located  when  1  went  to  tlif  Klondike,  but, 
like  a  scort^  of  otlier  creeks,  no  oin"  liad  prospected  it  until 
this  pummer,  and  no  one  knew  more  about  it  than  I,  who 
liad  nev(M'  Ikmmi  near  it.  I  have  no  claims  on  All  Gold 
and  am  not  advert isin^jj  it.  So  far  as  known,  the  creek 
ranking  next  to  llonanza  is  Dominion.  All  I  or  any  one 
can  pay  is  that  it  has  some  famous  claims.  1  know  a  few 
owners  who  would  not  think  of  accepting  $1<)(>,()00  for 
tlieir  claims,  and  there  arc  scores  who  would  refuse 
$r)0,000.  It  lias  not  been  prospected  thoroughly,  and  we 
cannot  say  how  long  the  pay  streak  will  turn  out.  Thero 
is  a  big  possibility  of  it  rivaling  Eldorado  and  Bonanza. 
It  heads  near  by  Kldorado,  but  runs  a  large  circle  of  forty 
or  more  miles  and  empties  south  into  Indian  Uivor.  It 
is  from  forty  to  sixty  miles  up  southeast  from  Dawson.  Its 
bench  claims  have  been  recently  located,  and  it  is  not  pos- 
sible to  say  how  good  they  are.  Sul])hur  has  many  de- 
votees who  firmly  believe  it  will  bo  second  to  none  when 
once  prospected  thoroughly;  fully  a  dozen  more  pay 
gulches  are  simply  at  their  opening;  all  these  are  a  net- 
work in  the  Klondike  district. 

Must  a  man  stampede?     If  he  does  not  stampede  he  is 
doubtful  about  getting  a  claim ;  if  he  gets  a  claim  the 


SAMUEL  .^AWnnXES,  M.I). 


^ilV 


pay 

net- 

|he  is 
II  the 


155 


quostion  is  whether  ho  had  hetter  not  havi-  pilten  it. 
IIouTver,  wo  oil  staiiiiiedo  on  tho  Kloinlike.  We  >('('  iwn 
or  tliroo  men  haviiiu'  a  private  cunrah,  a  niy,»teriniis  walk 
and  oonvorsalion ;  then  \\e  slvlv  oiillit  wiili  ;:rul)  and 
hhiidvots  and  walch.  Sure  ciKai^h,  they  strike  nut  ii|>  thi' 
trail,  hut  we  air  (i,i!n  tlrii!.  Soinehddy  walchi-  ii-  au'l 
thoy  too  follow,  aiid  liiiaily  a  eoniliiuniK  .-treani  llows  ii|) 
the  gulch.  Any  niiiiei-  not  too  husy  helps  swell  it,  and  it 
prows  too  lii;^'.  An  oM-tiiner  (|ni(  kly  reeopnizes  a  slam- 
pedo  from  its  move.  The  statn|)eder  has  ii  gait  poouHar 
to  him;  it  is  a  sort  <d'  eaniel-Iike  waddle — hall"  trot,  I'oi'- 
ward  poso,  and  rapid;  the  pack  ai^il  in.-ecure  fooling  ci-i'- 
atcs  this  motion,  and  all  fall  naturally  iti'o  il.  The  natiii-e 
of  tho  case  liurrios  jiim,  and  Ixd'ore  many  hours  his  mo- 
tion is  routino.  "^'our  leg?  Qche.  hut  you  ti'aiiip  on;  your 
hack  hreaks  from  the  load  you  pack,  hut  you  hear  the 
lairden  ;  your  eyes  goggle  out  almost;  your  feet  swell; 
your  face  pufTs  ;  your  hreath  whoozcs  ;  your  tongue  [)arclies  ; 
hut  your  spirit  never  Hags.  Pilgrim's  progi'ess  was  never 
more  heroically  fought  over  l)arriers  and  opjxisition  than 
do  these  stam]ieders  tight  their  way  into  a  new  discovery. 

After  luiniy  hours,  sonu>times  days,  o\-er  many  miles — 
twenty,  fortv,  sixty — you  reach  the  discoverers  staking 
their  claims;  you  do  likewise,  on  the  ])rineiple  lirst  come 
first  served.  And  what  have  you?  What  uo  call  heri'  a 
wild  cat  claim.  You  drift  hurriedly  hack,  hecause  there 
is  always  a  chance  that  some  stay-at-home  fellow  has  gone 
hefore  the  commissioner  and  sworn  to  having  located  the 
claim  corresponding  to  your  numher;  and  if  such  happens, 


'Hiiii  comnnssioner  award 


it  always  follows  that  the 
him  the  ownership,  without  redress.  The  conditions  the 
whole  of  last  winter  regulating  the  recording  and  owner- 
ship of  claims  are  illustrated  hy  this  remark  of  a  miner: 
"I  kick  very  little  over  two  or  three  days'   stampeding 


1 


y 


15C 


rilK  JUCCLiyK  AND  FALL  OF 


\^  V 


with  my  pnrk  upon  my  hnck  to  lornto  a  rliiim,  but  it  is 
hell  to  L'ct  iiiv  record  wlicii  I  n'luni.  TImvc  or  four  dnvs 
ill  tilt'  line  licforc  the  eoimiiissioiier's  ollice,  in  the  cdldest 
weatlier,  |i"r!i;ips,  makes  onr»  pray  for  n  new  voeahuhiry  to 
damn  the  ;;oId  eoniinI--ioMer,  Iiis  assistants,  and  the  wliolo 
of  liis  o[V\oo.  with  the  (.Uit'cii  r<.r  a|ipointin;,'  the  honh", 
Homethin;,'  ti'n  times  as  strong;  as  any  present  phrases  so 
they  may  ;(o  tlirou<'h  ilie  thick  skin  of  the  wretches." 

I  lived  iie.\t  do((r  to  the  cftniinissioni'r'rf  ollice  last  win- 
ter nnd  knew  i);io!'  miners  to  lie  all  ni;4iil  hcfure  the  ollice 
door  to  be  first  in  the  mornin;!;  and  avnid  days  of  delay. 
^Ty  own  (vxperience  is  that  from  ihne  hard-run  stam- 
pedes I  had  eourafre  only  to  weather  the  commissioner's 
ollice  to  register  one  claim. 

The  recording'  fee  is  $1."),  and  one  must  make  allldavit 
to  havin*,'  discovered  pold  on  "Claim  N'o.  — ,  on  lilank 
Creek,  Klondike  ^linin.i,'  District."  Of  course  the  snow 
may  be  two  feet  on  frozen  ;j:rouiid  that  would  reijuire  three 
weeks  to  ^'et  down  to  a  depth  where  colors  can  he  found; 
hut  the  law  retpiircs  this  oath,  and  (ncryhody  subscribes 
to  it,  Jlowever,  miners  do  not  com])lain  so  much  ahout 
Canadian  laws  as  ihey  do  about  otlicials  who  take  for 
granted,  after  the  (Queen's  tax  is  faithfully  exacted,  that 
what  is  left  in  the  possession  of  the  poor  American  is 
le^itinuite  prey  for  her  servants.  ^  « 

This  is  a  bit  of  dry  reading-,  and  thoufrli  T  can  go  on 
telling  you  v/hat  I  know  about  these  creeks,  you  may 
please  rest  on  my  assurance  that  the  hotlom  Vvill  not  fall 
out  of  the  Klondike  mining  district  for  years  to  come.  The 
TiOrd  knows  how  much  it  may  strengthen.  I  only  dwell 
upon  items  because  T  have  seen  elaborate  intei'views  con- 
cerning Klondike  by  men  who  never  were  over  the  summit 
or  on  the  Yukon,  and  T  have  also  seen  men  to  come  down 
out  of  Eldorado  and  declare  from  their  actual  observa- 


liV  • 


SAMUEL  SA  WnoM:s,  M.  D. 


is: 


tion  that  Kldonulo.  rvon,  would  littlo  morr  tl)an  pay 
working?  ex  pen  so?;,  a:nl  that  next  yt'ar,  iMih'ss  alt  ittyalty 
was  liiki'ii  oil",  it  \v(Mil(l  he  nliMiuloricd  as  wortlilcs^i. 

Snisatinii  jucliirt's  u\  tlu'  KInmlikc,  like  sciisiition  in  all 
forms,  spread  ity  iinlirnitod  ('X))n'ss.  Tlic  UrsL  Ijciuli 
claim  dis('ovri-iil  <m\  Siid-i'dirn  .liiii  Pup  was  an  narully 
fjood  thill;,',  it  |.;miiid  out  hcttfr  than  any  di;,';4iii;,'  Skoo- 
knrii  .lim  nwiicd.  I'»ut  do  simic  of  vou  nMiicmliiT  thi^ 
nowspapcr  aocouiitri  of  it,  wriltrii  hy  a  sjx'cial  corrcspoii- 
(lont — takoii  on  tlio  ^M'onnd,  as  it  wcro?  "Two  men  .-tuod 
guard  on  the  cljiim  whih'  the  ihird  drairirrd  loose  tlio  moss 
and  scrnpcd  the  ;:i.ld  nu;:u'i'ls  into  tisc  sack."  I  thou;,dit 
nt  first-  the  \i;,nhuit('s  ou;,dit  to  or^ranizo  just  to  hansx  ihr 
nowspajicr  rorn'spondt'Uts,  hut  U[)on  sober  thou^jits  it  oc- 
curred to  nie  that  that  correspondent  was  not  by  any 
means  so  ;,'real  a  liar  ns  was  ;,'reat  the  lie  he  told,  for  it 
must  ho  noted  iliat  the  newspaper  men  were  so  numerous 
and  so  had  and  lurhtilent  that  the  miner  made  him  a  spe- 
cial class  of  the  clieeeliokers  and  always  ;,aiarded  himself 
and  his  with  special  vii^ilance.  When  the  miners  on  .Skoo- 
kum  Pup  saw  the  special  approacli  their  claim,  I  have  no 
doubt  in  my  !nind  they  flew  to  their  shotguns  for  protec- 
tion, and  therefore  the  poor  fellow  wrote  only  what  was 
before  him,  actual  fact. 

Tliere  have  been  numerous  bench  claims  discovered, 
some  quite  equal  in  glory  to  Skookum  Jim  and  quite  bet- 
ter. There  have  been  actually  hun<lreds  of  bench  claims 
discovered  the  past  summer  that  pay  from  wages  to  small 
fortunes.  From  tlu>se  come  almost  total  relief  to  the 
overflow  of  humanity  this  season.  Almost  ever}'  energetic 
horse-sense  man  on  the  Klondike  can  make  it  possible  to 
earn  his  living  or  more  this  winter,  and  there  will  be  no 
starving,  suflfering,  or  want,  because  these  bench  claims 
will  help  him  out.     It  is  possible  to  work  most  of  them 


158 


THE  DECLINE  AND  FALL  OF 


M 


nnv  finrl  all  Poa?ons.  A  drawback  or  discount  on  jrulch 
claims  is  that  tlioy  have  only  a  harvcst-tinio  for  the  winter 
s(>as()n.  It  is  even  fifjured  by  respectable  authority  that  the 
benJi  claims  for  181)8  will  fill  to  overflowing  the  sacks 
necessary  to  transport  Jtll  iliist  from  the  creek  claims.  This 
is  a  briirht  side  wliicli  I  ;;m  ([uite  glad  to  fix  to  what  other- 
wise would  ill  jiiy  estimation  alone  make  the  Klondike 
good. 

The  "inysterious  ways  of  bench  claims  are  something 
like  this:  Xeiglibor  81  remarked  to  me  about  August  1: 
"Sour  r/ougli,  ]  am  going  \\\)  Bonan.za  to  look  at  a  Ijench 
claim.  Bill  Shaik  tells  me  of  several  unrecorded  claims 
at  the  mouth  of  Adams  Pup."  ITe  returned  next  day  for 
advice.  "T  do  not  know  what  to  do.  The  lay  is  all  right, 
but  there  is  no  prospecting  done,  and  no  one  'mows  if 
tliero  be  gold  or  no  gold  there.  Bill  Shark  must  have 
half  the  claim  for  putting  me  onto  it.  I  do  not  want  to 
lose  my  right  of  locating  o:i  a  barren  claim."  Bill  Shark 
fees  the  commissioner's  cleri:,  who  keeps  him  in  abstracts 
of  unrecorded  or  recorded  claims.  lie  sells  the  vacant 
claims  out  for  the  above  inter(\«t,  and  whctlKn'  good  or 
bad  he  is  no  loser,  but  a  possible  gainer.  I  therefore  con- 
demn any  partnership  with  Bill  Shark,  ai'd  Si  did  not 
record  Xo.  2  north  on  Adams  Creek.  About  the  las^  day 
of  August  my  7!oighbor  greeted  r-^n  thus:  "T  ought  to 
beat  you  over  the  licad,  c'ld  Sour  Dough.  I  just  came 
down  from  the  ore' k,  and  the  owners  of  Xo.  2  Adams 
Creek,  my  ab-, p^loned  claim,  are  taking  out  $100  to  the 
man.*'     Of  course  he  should  have  beat  me. 

The  growth,  the  resources  of  the  Klondike  have  been 
discussed  from  day  to  day  since  its  discovery.  Although 
we  disentangle  the  lies,  exonerate  impostors,  deduct  the 
natural-born  boom  of  oulsid(^  blagues,  and  discount  for. 
tunes,  yet  wo  see  it  grow  bigger  and  better,  steadily  and 


SAMUEL  SA  WBONES,  M.  D. 


159 


ill 

ho 


surely.  Tho  pay  district  of  two  years  ago  was  i'n  niva 
twenty  miles  in  dianu'tci';  one  year  ago  I'orly  miles;  at 
the  present  time  it  is  sixty  mili'<  I'mm  Dawson  to  the  fur- 
thest trihiilaries  of  the  Klondike  which  have  good  dig- 
gings. 

Never  have  the  hest  mines  on  ]']ld()rado  hi'cn  eclipsed, 
but  Dominion  has  prospects  promising  as  well.  What  we 
called  wild  cat  claims  on  wild  cat  creeks  the  past  year  an' 
fast  turning  out  good  pay  hy  prosjui-ting  or  devi'lo|)ing. 
This  is  th(>  simplest  ]iro]tosition  in  ilie  world:  That  the 
output  of  the  Klondike  district  will,  like  its  area,  douhlo 
from  year  to  year.  I  will  not  j»re(licl  its  limit — niavho 
ten  yeai'S.  But  we  must  not  hiind  ourschcs  into  a,  hi'licf 
that  it  is  a  South  African  buhide,  that  it  will  ever  hreak 
and  scatter  the  dfhris  of  human  aspirations  and  air  castles 
over  the  land.  It  ought  to  he  the  duty,  howcncr,  of  some 
luimanitarian  to  systematize  th(^  business  and  migration 
to  the  Klondike.  At  every  loading-place,  at  ev(>ry  pass 
should  be  stationed  a"  insj)ector  with  a  club,  as  they  place 
sanitary  otlicers  and  inspectors  at  j)oints  to  prevent  driving 
or  carrying  of  unsound  beef,  cattle,  and  hogs  into  new 
markets,  vrith  instructions  to  beat  Ijack  tluit  part  of  tl:e 
mob  not  lUted  for  the  held.  Anybody  will  make  a  suc- 
cessful miner  with  horse-sense,  with  the  endurance  of  tlu; 
mule,  the  honesty  and  integrity  of  a  Chinaman.  Men 
■with  money  not  only  should  pass,  but  should  (jo  invited 
to  pass.  Old  men  should  be  beat  hard  over  the  head  ami 
held  back.  Very  young  ones  should  be  kicked  back,  (iii-!- 
without  mothers  are  surely  lost  there,  lii-ides  and  Iiai'dy 
families  may  go  through,  and — yes,  sure  I — send  lliat  b(ja(- 
load  of  widows.  It  cannot  hurt  the  widows  ami  may  do 
the  country  lots  of  good.  Does  the  country  want  ser- 
vants and  waiter  girls?  \Ve\].  ye- ;  but  we  can  get  on  with 
men  and  Chinamen  until  the  moral  atmosphere  is  steril- 


in 


t%  l1 


m  \ 


160 


THE  DECLINE  AAJJ  FALL  OF 


W 


! 

■r 


izc'd.  In  plain  tcrnl^,  no  one  sliould  pass  who  lias  no  vis- 
ible metins  of  support — no  bums,  no  all-round  handy  men, 
no  (gentlemen  or  ladies  of  leisui'e;  tlic\'  simply  s})oil  the 
industrious,  and  the  natural  descent  of  men  will  furnish 
tlio  market  with  more  than  the  demand  for  such. 

MISCELLAXEODS. 

And  arc  there  any  good  things  on  the  Klondike  else 
than  gold?  It  depends  nmch  upon  how  one  is  built.  I 
may  here  mention  a  society  ball  that  broke  up  at  daylight 
next  morning — it  is  good  to  dance  all  nighi.  Of  course 
there  are  some  good  peo])le  living  here,  chietly  old-timers 
and  natives — not  cheechokers.  Society  is  beginning  to 
take  on  the  velvety  distinction  of  hand  and  hood  that  dis- 
tinguishes it  outside,  and  you  see  a  society  belle  go  along 
not  turning  up  her  nose  at  some  obscure  sister,  but  fixed 
intent  upon  her  own  gum  boots  as  she  dashes  on.  Nor 
does  Mrs.  Skookum  Jim  deign  to  be  so  formal  with  !Madam 
AViki  Cat  Sam  as  in  old  times.  And  I  nm  pleased  to  tell 
you  tliat  many  of  the  things  are  not  too  bad.  .Mosquitoes? 
While  in  the  gulches  they  are  plentiful,  yet  in  Dawson 
they  are  scarcely  annoying.  A  good  many  funny  stories 
are  founded  on  fact.  I  saw  people  taire  in  immense  sacks 
in  wdiich  to  carry  out  their  goM,  and  it  is  a  fact  that  some 
carried  in  garden  rakes  to  lake  up  nuggets  with  from  the 
river  beds ;  but  it  may  have  only  been  told  to  me  as  a  joke 
tliat  a  man  went  in  with  a  lot  of  cages  to  bring  out  Klon- 
dike mosquitoes  to  sell  to  you  people  outside  for  canary 
birds.  And  I  did  dilate  in  foregoing  pages  upon  the  in- 
tense satisfaction  and  comfort  of  the  long  wdnter  nights. 
With  loads  of  furs  underneath  and  loads  on  top,  one  curls 
np  so  snug  he  dreads  getting  up  at  all,  and  as  daylight 
appears  at  10  see  what  a  long,  sweet  sleep  one  has.     Then 


SAMUEL  8 A  WB0NE8,  M.  D. 


161 


\   \ 


ho  gets  his  broakfast,  wliioh  poarcoly  ovor,  finds  it  nooii- 
tinio,  and  inasimicli  as  one  is  lnm<ri'y  all  llii'  tunc,  he  hails 
his  dinner-timo  with  the  delii^lit  ol'  an  infant.  TIkmi  ri^iit 
on  tlic  heels  of  dinner  is  dark — suj)pi'r-tJnu'.  Yon  are 
just  as  linnt,nT,  and  sui)]jer  is  just  jis  much  of  ;i  relish  as 
the  breakfast.  Tlu;  threes  dcli^dits  follow  ont'  on  the  heels 
of  the  other  so  rapidly  that  one  is  in  a  continual  ecstasy. 
But  if  the  winter  is  sinnptuous  summer  is  t^orgeous.  It 
is  truly  hard  to  delineate  the  summer  in  Dawson.  Karly 
summer  is  the  rainy  season  in  Dawson;  this  means  a  smart 
tlunider-shower  once  or  twice  a  week  for  a  season  of  six 
weeks.  In  fact,  it  would  not  count  as  the  I'aiiiy  season 
anywhere  else.  The  sun  in  sunnner  hanirs  heavy  over- 
liead  for  several  hours  in  the  middle  of  the  day.  The 
day  might  be  tedious  and  oppressive,  only  that  the  moun- 
tains surrounding  Dawson  ari'  so  high  tiiat  tlu'  iniiiuigiit 
sun  of  the  poets  never  shines.  I  nnist  confess  ii  wakes 
up  a  little  too  early  for  the  lover  of  winier  fe>!ivi(ies,  yet 
it  is  not  harsh,  and  not  until  about  noon  tloes  it  seem  to 
want  to  show  off;  then  about  S  o'clock  it  hides  beliind  the 
near  peaks  again,  but  does  not  go  down.  The  day's  work 
is  done,  the  dishes  washed,  the  childnMi  to  bed.  Oh,  no. 
You  don't  get  a  Klondike  kid  to  bed  at  S  o'clock.  Jkit 
the  most  tranquil,  interesting  twilight,  the  most  I'aptur- 
ous  the  idlest  dreamer  could  picture!  That  is  nothing. 
Every  nation  in  every  clime  enjoys  its  twilight,  in  which 
the  giddy  young  and  the  loony  old  liave  their  twiliglit 
walks  and  sittings  and  courtship.  Of  course  they  do;  but 
what  twilights!  Two  lovers  on  th(^  veranda  have  wrought 
up  by  cooing  and  wooing  Iwo  heart.-  to  beat  as  one,  whe;i 
the  electric  light  is  snapped  upon  them;  this  beeau>e  of 
the  dark  crecj)ing  on.  Ihu'c  the  twilight  is  all  night. 
Stop  a  moment  to  think.  \'ou.  young  man.  may  walk  so 
far  out  the  avenue  with  a  sparkling  girl  who  must  rcniijid 


I. 


W  IIWWili  nil  ii  III  ibtoi^f 


--"*■»•>- 'immiiiKi 


r.''  *j 


162 


TUE  DECLINE  AND  FALL  OF 


\ 


V 

I' 


you :  "Now  we  must  turn  back.  Ma  says  I  must  not  be 
out  late  at  nigliL."  On  the  Ivlondiko,  on  the  banks  of  the 
^'ukoii,  you,  like  tlie  river,  ^(o  on  and  on  forever,  for  dark 
ddcsn't  come,  and  all  this  time  the  air  is  enchanting,  sim- 
ply cool ;  the  sun  simply  sets  and  a  sunset  guides  you  on. 
Th(,*  high  j)caks  and  dill's  hang  over  and  you  dream  sub- 
lime things.  The  wide,  swift  Yukon  may  sing  to  you  or 
thrill  and  startle  you  by  turns.  There  are  scarcely  stars 
— planets — enough  overhead  to  watch  over  you.  Thi!re  are 
round  and  about  you  other  things  to  recall  y(»ii  to  things 
earthly,  but  you  aro  r^jt  embarrassed  by  fear  df  darkness, 
and  only  when  full  to  o\t'ril()wiiig  need  you  ([uit.  Ah, 
yes,  a  suninier  night  in  Klondike,  a  dear  friend  on  the 
banks  of  the  Yukon,  a  sweetheart  or  an  old  chum  with  his 
])ipe  for  a  stroll,  or  lone  revei'ie,  and  this  for  hours  and 
houro  and  from  day  to  day.  makes  life  worth  the  living 
indeed.  This  will  make  Dawson  a  summer  retreat  early 
sought  for  in  the  hereafter. 

1  may  add  that  regardless  of  what  has  been  said  of  gum 
boots,  they  will  have  lost  prestige  by  next  season.  Now 
half  of  Main  Street  is  perfectly  dry  and  a  fine  promenade, 
while  the  work  of  building  up  the  bad  part  will  not  fail. 
f]vcn  this  season  was  not  a  poor  one  for  tourists.  Our 
sw(  !i  hotel  charged  an  ounce  for  a  chicken  dinner  and  $10 
for  a  bottle  of  claret,  Init  one  must  only  dine  out  on  the 
invitation  of  his  Eldorado  friend.  As  for  his  coffee,  he 
must  not  be  particular  between  the  llavor  of  St.  Charles 
evaporated  cream  and  fresh  cow's  milk.  Yes,  there  is 
fresh  milk  there,  sure.  I  saw  a  cow  come  and  sell  for 
$1,000.  Oh!  Why,  yes:  slie  was  worth  it.  The  milk 
sold  for  $10  per  gallon.  Some  fool  paid  $10  per  gallon 
for  milk?  No  fool;  he  sold  milk  punches  at  $1.50  per 
glass.  "Oh,  the  ass  is  he  who  drank  milk  punches.''  Not 
quite.     After  he  drank  one  milk  punch  his  claim,  valued 


S^ 


:=:r 


SAMUEL  SA  W BONES,  M.  D. 


1H3 


at  $?0,000,  had  onhnncctl,  in  his  mind,  to  $10,000,  aftor 
which  he  could  all'ord  anotlicr  punch ;  then  he  felt  as  rich 
as  Big  Alex  or  any  other  man  on  the  Klondike.  Do  you 
see?  And  our  big  iiotel  made  an  announcement  that  they 
owned  an  interest  in  a  cow  and  patrons  mi;^!it  expeet  i're-h 
milk. 

Possibly  tlic  greatest  exaggeration — in  plain  terms,  tlie 
biggest  lies — told  of  the  Klondike,"  is  in  the  matter  of 
health.  I  think  you  can  all  recall  harassing  tales  of  ex- 
tensive graveyards.  The  faets  are  brief.  1  heard  the  re- 
port read  by  Father  Judge,  in  charge  of  the  only  hospit^il 
in  Dawson,  in  March  of  this  }(,'ar,  and  inasmuch  as  feu- 
people  had  homes,  nearly,  if  not  all,  the  sick  were  found 
at  this  hospital.  Thirteen  deaths  had  occurred  in  it  from 
all  causes  durii'.g  its  existence,  almost  from  the  founding 
of  Dawson,  where  were  5,000  jieople.  We  have  a  right  to 
expect,  as  it  is  a  very  low  death-rate,  ten  deaths  per  thou- 
sand, or  in  this  population  tifty  deaths  for  a  year.  Pos- 
sibly the  hospital  was  only  nine  months  old;  then  thirty- 
seven  deaths  would  represent  a  lo,w  mortality  where  in 
fact  were  only  thirteen.  The  prevailing  disease  is  ma- 
larial fever,  which  commonly  merges  into  typhoid.  It  ia 
in  every  phase  the  mountain  fever  of  our  early  days  in 
Montana.  It  is,  in  fact,  a  typho-malarial  fever.  I  can 
say  that  in  my  own  experience  every  case  treated  early  in 
its  inception  is  controlled  by  the  usual  nuilarial  usage  of 
the  Pocky  ]\Iountain  regions.  If  neglected  or  typhoid 
occurs  before  one  sees  it,  the  management  still  is  simple 
and  effective.  Dr.  Chambers,  who  had  several  years  on 
the  Yukon  with  a  previous  experience  in  Montana,  and 
who  had  the  bulk  of  the  ho-pital  ])raetiee  the  past  year, 
said  none  of  his  typlioid  ca.-es  died  uidess  complicated 
with  a;2:e  or  seurvv;  tliat  in  fart  verv  fev,-  die  fri^m  anv 
account.     I  am  sorrv  to  sav  vou  mav  latelv  have  authenli- 


n 


ntkk  ^emlmmm>mm» 


T 


f 


164 


TUE  DECLINE  AND  FALL  OF 


•> 


rated  accounts  of  more  than  the  usual  deaths  in  Dawson. 
Well,  tliis  is  tlio  way  of  it:  In  the  severest  typhoid  sea- 
son, ill  the  midst  of  the  epidemic,  early  in  Au<^ust,  a  Cana- 
dian medical  law  was  enforced  in  Dawson  wliich  incapaci- 
tated all  American  physicians,  none  having  a  Canadian 
license.  Only  the  Americans  had  experience  in  this  dis- 
ease, and  they  were  df)ing  the  practice  chielly.  Throwing 
this  epidemic  strictly  from  the  safe  managcmer.t  of  this 
class  into  the  charge  of  the  other,  who  actually  could  not 
manage  it,  who  knew  nothing  about  it,  must  necessarily 
create  horrors.  I  fear  this  season  will  pan  out  many 
more  deaths  than  would  necessarily  have  followed  a  sen- 
sible or  decent  treatment  of  American  doctors.  In  fact, 
I  do  not  hesitate  to  say,  inasmuch  as  most  victims  arc 
American,  our  (Jovernment  could  give  it  some  of  the 
attention  it  bestows  upon  preserving  the  seals  from 
British-American  ra])acity. 

I  do  think  in  the  near  future  the  Alps  and  A})])i'nniues 
will  sulTer  from  the  competition  of  this  Yukon  valley.  You 
have  all  and  everything  here  you  have  there  and  a  thou- 
sand strange  interesting  things  more.  On  my  return  I 
experienced  on  the  trail  over  the  summit  almost  the  ex- 
treme interest  sought  for  in  a  climb  of  the  Alps;  the  mis- 
step, the  slide,  the  dash  over  the  fearful  «:lacier  can  be 
made  quite  possible  for  any  one's  ambition.  The  various 
transportation  companies  for  the  Yukon  have  not  yet  dis- 
covered the  genius  in  me,  nor  have  purchased  my  service 
to  write  up  the  advantages  of  any  special  route  in  or  out 
of  the  country,  therefore  I  will  have  little  to  say  of  it. 
Tlie  scenery  about  the  beginning  of  September  on  tiie 
Yukon  below  Dawson  and  as  well  above  Dawson  to  the 
lakes  is  worth  portrayal.  T  happened,  coming  up.  to  board 
a  tine,  large  river  boat,  and  mu?t  confess  to  a  delightful 
excursion.     However,  it  was  a  little  tedious,  because  once 


*„^i 


SAMUEL  »svi  WBOXES,   M.  D. 


165 


a  (lay  wc  would  run  on  a  sand  bar — tie  up,  as  it  were,  for 
a  day.  Yos,  wo  always  got  oil',  but  wi.'3n  the  girl  you  left 
behind  the  year  previous  begins  to  haunt  you  and  you  have 
had  a  diile  made  for  her,  it  i;;  just  a  little  bit  exasperating 
to  have  l(j  change  that  date  further  oil  every  day.  How- 
ever, big  boats  ean  cliinij  the  Yukon  readily  to  White 
Horse  if  I  lie  niauagenieut  is  sutlicient.  At  l-'ive  I'^iugers 
we  dres.-<d  in  lii'e-i)reservers,  but  the  Ixnit  climbed  u]»  as 
if  on  a  stampede.  I  have  no  fearful  catastrophe  to  chron- 
icle at  White  Horse  or  crossing  Windy  Arm  nor  over  the 
lakes  to  Bennett.  We  had  a  ciioice  to  walk  over  the  Dyea 
trail  twenty  miles  or  ride  to  Skagway  forty  miles  on 
horseback.  This  is  easy.  "\'es ;  but  they  say  Skagway, 
like  Hades,  is  paved  not  with  skulls,  but  with  dead  horses. 
How?  Why.  they  would  tundjle  over  the  rocks  and  break 
a  leg  or  back.  Well,  I,  not  used  to  riding,  stampeded 
across  to  Dyea. 

Now,  there  is  an  easy  way  over  the  Dyea  trail,  not 
much  talked  of,  iinl  miieh  sought,  in  fact,  it  is  the  wire 
tramway.  Three  of  us,  wet,  tired,  and  hungry,  wheedled 
a  tender  at  a  way  station  to  let  us  take  the  place  of  the 
big  stones  for  ballast  and  ride  down.  Mr.  A.  was  suffer- 
ing injury;  ^\y.  !'».,  your  humble  servant,  was  leg  wear}'; 
Mr.  C — well,  he  would  walk  because  of  trailing  a  valuable 
dog.  A.  took  his  departure;  then  T  took  a  seat,  tailor 
fashion,  in  the  little  Imcket  and  was  wafted  down,  on, 
over,  up  and  down,  across  innnense  chasms,  gulches, 
through  treetops.  scraping  rocks  and  underbrush,  again 
in  the  clouds,  fast  and  slow,  creaking,  scrcecliing,  but 
which  I  interpreted  the  devil  giggling,  laughing.  And 
then  the  reflection  of  a  possible  halt  over  one  of  the  hni'rid 
gulfs  and  a  cold  rain  or  a  break  and  a  fall;  to  live  a  life 
on  the  Yukon,  only  to  die  an  ignominious  death  from  a 
shallow  little  bucket,  scattered  over  the  rocks  and  mixed 


\  li 


II.      1  III «iMr lilt i>ii i  ii^|.f|f'.  .■-^■. 


T 


166 


THE  DECLINE  AND  FALL  OF 


1:1 


with  tho  Fcorop  of  (load  horpos !  Well,  1  invontod  an  appe- 
tite for  cxcus(!  to  pet  out  at  the  next  station  for  lunch  and 
await  i\rr.  C.  on  the  trail.  While  at  lunch  npj)cared  Mr. 
A.  Oh,  yes;  ho  thought  he  would  p't  out  at  the  station 
and  wait  to  see  if  I  irot  throucfh  all  ri,<,dit,  Itut  he  hid  when 
I  eanie  for  IVar  F  would  call  him  in  a,u^ain.  lie  told  mo 
I^Ir.  V.  too  came  down  in  a  bucket  and,  like  himself,  had 
H  very  pleasant  ride.  ('.  struck  off  d<nvn  the  trail  afoot. 
I  must  confess  I  wasn't  solicitous  for  the  other  fellows,  nor 
liad  T  a  dof^  to  look  up,  yet  I  mad(>  myself  believe  I  was 
quite  stronf^  aitjain  and  that  it  would  do  me  good  to  walk 
the  balance  of  the  trail.  Why,  of  course  it  is  a  nice  ride. 
Try  it  some  time.  Three  weeks  was  my  time  from  Daw- 
son to  Seattle.  It  might  have  been  made  two  weeks  by  a 
little  rustling. 


I 


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SAMUEL  8A  WBONES,  M.  D. 


IGT 


CANADIAN  BOERS. 

What  ails  tlitv,  Siunut'l  Sawbones,  Kscj.,  M.  1).?  '•Noth- 
ing'." J'orhaps!  He  was  iiiupiiig.  .Maybe  the  missives 
I'rom  lioino  were  not  inspiring,  though  certainly  stiiuulat- 
ing.  Samuel  was  standing  the  climate  heroieally,  as  wit- 
nessed by  his  every  day  braving  the  weather  and  greeting 
his  old-time  friends  with  all  sorts  oi  cheer  and  assurance. 
He  was  not  dyspe{)tie,  for  this  winter  is  (uring  all  tlu; 
dyspeptics  in  the  camp.  1  fancy  it  cures  them  under  all 
conditions.  The  extreme  cold  from  a  scientific  standpoint 
grows  a  fierce  appetite,  and  from  my  observation  it  fits 
one  with  an  ample  digestion  to  cojx'  with  the  extra  food 
devoured.  In  good  faith,  1  believe  the  Klondike  jnay  b(> 
made  a  health  resort  for  poor  dyspeptics.  Wi'll,  then,  of 
course  it  must  be  Sawbones'  love  all'airs  that  prey  ujjon 
him.  I  am  afraid  I  may  not  have  detailed  all  the  items 
received  from  his  dear  girl  left  behind,  liut  Ihey  may 
harass  you  and  we  will  pass  them  by.  1  iny>elf  wonbl 
not  have  cause  to  molt  from  all  the  bull's  and  rebufi's  of  his 
comparatively  smooth  love  aiTairs,  but  then  1  am  a  veteran 
in  the  wars  of  the — well,  say  liver,  for  it  plays  as  much 
the  part  of  love  as  any  other  organ.  For  what  is  love, 
anyway?  Some  may  say:  "A  great  roll  of  'gilt  edge' 
churned  from  the  milk  of  human  kindness,  which  is  relish 
forever."  Another  will  remark:  "Yes,  then  we  must  go 
on  churning,  ever  churning,  or  else  it  will  stale." 

But  I  fear  Dr.  Sawbones  was  sufi'ering  persecutions  of 
his  professional  brethren.  The  Canadian  doctors  coming 
in  look  the  landscape  over  and  say :  "Xothiug  for  me  until 


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the  l)la«i('(l  Ainoricans  arc  roiitcil."  Tlion  ht'^'ins  tlio  rru- 
sadc.  'I'lic  fine  IVii'iKlly  n'ciprofity  of  Canada  s^ays: 
"(Jraduatc's  of  our  own  medical  scliools  may  practice  niiy- 
wlicrc  in  the  Dominion  hy  virtue  of  such  diplmmi.  All 
()tlK'r.-5  must  appear  before  an  examining,'  hoai'd  (d'  the  Do- 
minion for  a  license  to  praetico."  Of  cour.^e  Sawhones 
could  not  ^'o  outside,  \vln'n>  alone  such  examining,'  hoard 
was  to  be  found,  therefore  he  must  abide  the  combined 
ell'orts  of  these  hun<,M'y  Canadians  to  turn  him  out.  i\s 
Americans  very  tnuch  predominated  on  tin.'  Klondike, 
necessarily  the  chief  physicians  were  Americans.  'I'hey, 
with  the  usual  stock  of  Yankee  Doodle  in  their  blood,  held 
fast  to  the  end.  The  end  came  otic  day  when  one  and  all, 
like  the  rebel  ancfels,  were  sunimo!'.e<l  liefore  tlie  ;.nvat  hiijh 
priest  of  the  celestial  city  of  Daw.-on.  This  ^leat  lii>fh 
priest  is  nothing  but  a  captain  of  the  mo.-t  woriliy  niouideil 
police  on  foot,  alias  his  worship  the  justice  of  the  jieace. 
And  these  captains  of  mounted  ))olice  on  the  Kloiulike 
appear  to  mo  to  about  as  nearly  ajiproach  the  dit^niity,  llie 
honor,  and  the  virtue  of  what  such  otlieer  of  the  mounted 
police  should  command  as  does  the  vaiKpiished  knight  un- 
horsed, disarmed,  and  enslaved.  The  American  doctors 
approached  with  fear  and  trend)lin<j^  the  auj^mst  ])resence 
of  one  of  these  ca]dains,  these  justices  of  th<^  peace,  ami  T 
must  confess  to  an  unusual  consideration.  They  were  fined 
simply  one  dollar  and  no  costs.  And  what  a  fall  was 
ther(>  of  doctors'  si^^ns.  Only  l^r.  Sawbones,  though  not 
sh)\v  to  concur  in  the  sentence  of  his  worship,  was  slow  to 
]mll  down  liis  shin<;^le.  The  doctor  had  innumerable 
friends  on  the  jrulches,  and  tluve  be  wislunl  to  see  as  they 
mic^lit  drop  into  town,  and  except  thron,c:li  such  siirn  one 
was  quite  hiiblen  from  every  one  except  by  accidental 
moetinfr.  But  with  due  consideration  for  the  decree  of 
his  worship  the  captain  of  the  mounted  police  on  foot, 


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WEBSTER,  N.Y.  14580 

(716)  872-4503 


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SAMUEL  SA  WBONES,  M.  D. 


169 


Dr.  Sawbones  carefully  covered  the  M.  I),  on  his  shingle 
to  destroy  the  identity  of  his  nefarious  calling — his  poach- 
ing upon  the  hun^n-y  checchokers  of  Canada  whose  pills 
and  pukes  lay  idly  waiting  to  get  in  their  work.  I  must 
confess  to  a  sad  scene  on  witnessing  Samuel  .Sawbi^ncs, 
Esq.,  M.  J).,  carefully  cover  his  title  with  several  wrap- 
pings of  usi'less  gauze  and  the  tears  course  down  his 
bronzed  cheeks,  worn  with  years  of  toil,  exposure  and  re- 
verses under  the  auspices  and  vouched  for  by  this  same 
title.  He  said  he  was  wriip})ing  up  his  hcr.rt,  and  it  might 
possibly  not  bear  the  pressure  and  quit  beating,  lie  quoted 
some  unintelligible  Latin  to  be  found  in  his  diploma,  in 
which  the  great  heads  granting  announced  his  fitness  to 
practice  medicine  and  clothe  him  with  this  same  M.  D. 
that  now  he  must  haul  down. 

Samuel  survived  his  hostility  to  his  feelings  and  was 
dream' •i'^  of  the  future,  wliun  he  had  an  unwelcome  visitor 
in  sliaj'C  ;i:i..'  ;)cir'>n  of  the  same  minion  of  the  law  as  here- 
tofore had  ii  I'ormcd  him  of  his  transgnvsion  by  practice 
of  medicine.  This  time  was  not  an  indictment  for  prac- 
ticing, but  for  his  poor  little  shingle.  "Any  person  not 
registered  who  takes  or  uses  any  name,  title,  addition,  or 
description  implying  or  calculatt'd  to  lead  people  to  infer 
that  he  is  registered  or  that  he  is  recognized  by  law  as  a 
physician,  surgeon,  c^c,  shall  be  liable  to  conviction  and 
fine."  His  poor  little  gauze-covered  shingle  ''haunts  them 
still!"     "It  must  down." 

This  assumption  seemed  heaping  insult  upon  injury,  and 
poor  Dr.  Sawbones  felt  outraged  beyond  limit.  He  was  of 
course  yanked  up  before  his  worshipful  the  justice  of  the 
peace,  a  captain  of  the  Xorthwest  ]\Iounted  Police,  as  per 
former,  occasion.  Here  he  was  unceremoniously  fined  $50 
or  jailed  till  paid.  He  protested  that  he  had  the  title 
M.  D.  duly  covered;  but  to  no  avail,  for  that  very  digni- 


!» 


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170 


THE  DECLINE  AND  FALL  OF 


fied,  honorable,  worthy  ofliccr  of  the  Dominion  of  Canada's 
very  pet  body  of  law  preservers  so  huinblcd  himself  as  to 
confess  that  he  himself  had  paraded  past  the  premises  of 
the  accused  and  had  witnessed  the  sign  as  per  indictment. 
That  it  was  covered  witli  two  tliicknesses  of  gauze  could 
cut  no  figure  in  the  C3'es  of  the  law.  '^I'hen  Dr.  Sawhonos 
pleaded  that  ho  was  duly  commissioned  with  the  M.  D.  by 
the  great  University  of  Pennsylvania,  and  that  in  grant- 
ing him  "doctor"  he  could  not  think  it  meant  him  to  be 
doctor  in  the  United  States  and  upon  crossing  the  line  he 
must  cut  "doctor"  olT  his  card.  lie  presumed  he  could 
call  himself  a  doctor  or  be  called  doctor  anywhere  in  the 
world  without  incurring  any  criminal  penalty;  that  the 
American  Government  had  no  embargo  against  Canadians 
coming  over  in  the  States  and  calling  themselves  doctors. 
"The  University  of  Pennsylvania  and  the  United  States 
be  damned.  Our  law  is  as  you  sec  it  in  this  indictment." 
I  say  so,  too,  for  Dr.  Sawbones,  upon  writing  to  the  Uni- 
versity of  Pennsylvania,  received  the  very  meek  answer 
that  if  Canada  chooses  to  imprison  one  of  its  graduates 
for  the  presumption  of  calling  himself  doctor,  it  was  right 
and  proper  to  take  the  medicine. 

Samuel  Sawbones,  ]\I.  D.,  was  literally  dragged  off  to 
jail,  and  only  because  he  believed  that  after  thirty  years' 
labor,  vouched  for  by  an  M.  D.  and  granted  by  a  self- 
reputed  respectable  institution,  he  could  go  before  the 
world  and  say  he  was  a  doctor.  In  jail?  No;  jail  is  no 
name  for  the  pen  he  was  thrown  into.  A  miserable  hole 
in  which  were  a  miscellaneous  mass  of  humanity — four  in- 
sane, a  dozen  drunks,  a  dozen  criminals  intermixed;  no 
beds,  no  chairs,  no  room.  This  lot  were  intermingled 
through  the  night  in  all  shapes  and  conditions,  as  few  had 
room  on  the  floor  to  stretch  themselves.  Samuel  alter- 
nated with  another  prisoner  the  use  of  a  bench  four  feet 


SAMUEL  SA  W BONES,  M.  D. 


171 


long.  The  iiiglit  grew  cold  in  spite  of  the  close  condition, 
but  he  had  no  l^hmkct.  The  big,  husky  police  attending 
was  appealed  to,  but  in  vain.  Certainly  Sawbones  could 
have  had  a  blanket  if  he  had  handed  over  his  "poke"  to 
Ihe  guard;  he  might  even  have  had  the  privilege  to  s])read 
it  over  the  other  poor  devils  and  streteh  himself.  That 
ii  was  beastly,  inhuman,  barbarous  treatment  is  j)utting  it 
in  too  mild  terms;  that  putting  him  in  jail  or  fining  him 
was  dastardly  mean,  contemptibly  dirty  work  of  the  jus- 
tice, of  the  Canadian  doctors,  through  several  cats'  paws  to 
be  found  low  enough  among  them,  is  too  plausible  to  listen 
to  any  other  argument.  That  it  was  absolutely  illegal, 
because  his  shingle  was  in  full  intent  and  purpose  entirely 
without  any  symbol  of  doctor  thereon  I  am  personally  able 
to  avow,  for  I  can  make  affidavit  that  such  were  the  con- 
ditions. But  the  mounted  police  captain  who  could  so 
easily  and  naturally  assume  the  role  of  spy  saw  the  sign 
with  dilTerent  eyes  than  mine,  which  rested  daily  upon  it, 
and  th.ere  was  no  redress.  In  fact,  during  my  stay  there 
I  never  saw  redress  in  any  case.  Xow  and  then  one  could 
get  justice  by  virtue  of  the  position  in  which  lie  was 
thrown.  For  instance,  I  overheard  the  following  quiz- 
zing bv  Dr.  Sawbones  and  answer: 

'"Jli'llo,  Dr.  Le  Bum !  You  were  not  at  the  American 
doctor's  picnic  before  his  worship  the  justice  of  the  peace, 
tiie  captain  of  the  police.     How  were  you  left  out?'' 

"Why?  Well,  it  is  simply  this,  but  do  not  tell  it.  I 
doctored  the  captain  lately,  and  he  did  not  like  me  thera 
for  fear  I  might  let  go  some  ugly  evidence." 

But  in  the  matter  of  persecution  the  doctors  had  not 
more  to  complain  of  than  the  miners  and  the  people  gen- 
erally. Not  that  the  laws  arc  so  bad  but  that  the  laws 
are  badly  administered.  The  Queen's  tax  for  lumber  is 
only  a  matter  of  1  cent  per  running  foot  for  cabin  logs, 


r        n 

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■T-"  ■';■?■ -^CiS* 


i 


172 


TUE  DECLINE  AND  FALL  OF 


but  wIkmi  T  nskod  for  a  ])rri;iit  to  rut  logs  to  build  a  cabin 
1  was  r<.'l\'rn'il  to  Siiii!li  i^j  Co.,  for,  siiys  tbe  timber  in- 
ppcf'tor,  wo  gave  this  linn  lli(>  graut  of  twenty  miles  (more 
or  loss)  up  the  Yukon  f.^r  all  the  logs.     Smith  &  Co.  said 
yos,  you  may  cut  cabin  logs  on  our  grant,  but  you  must 
pay  us  7  cents  per  running  foot  for  logs.     You  see,  wc 
must  pay  the  timber  inspuetor  4  cents  per  foot.     Well, 
you  know  we  must  make  a  lillle  profit,  so  must  ehargo 
you  7  cents  foi  the  same.     This  is  fact,  not  fancy.     Then 
in  another  direction  comes  tliis  fact:     I  discover  a  mine. 
After  staking  comes  recording.     I  approach  the  commis- 
sioner with  my  location  notice  and  fee  of  $15,  which  he 
scrutinizes,  then  advises  one  of  two  ways:     "'J'his  ground 
is  not  surveyed  ground  and  we  cannot  record  it  until  the 
government  surveyor  plats  it,"  or  "Wc  have  not  time  to- 
day to  look  this  claim  up  to  see  if  it  is  open  to  location, 
therefore  call  again  day  after  to-morrow."     During  the 
interim  this  claim  is  investigated  by  special  agents  or  tools, 
and  if  they  report  it  a  good  or  promising  claim  my  answer 
will  be:     "I  am  sorry  to  say  the  claim  in  question  has 
been  recorded  by  John  Doe  previous  to  your  application." 
These  agents  are  about  Dawson  looking  for  prospectors, 
whom  they  approach  thus:     "I  will  put  yoa  into  a  first- 
class  claim,  granted,  of  course,  that  you  deed  me  a  half 
interest   in  the  same."     This  is  no  picture  drawn  from 
my  imagination,  but  such  a  frequent  transaction  that  we 
all  claim  it  is  the  nile.     The  Klondike  Nugrjol,  a  lively 
newspaper  of  Dawson,  has  given  scores  of  cases,  with  full 
proof,  just  as  I  relate  this,  and  no  one  in  Dawson  stops  to 
question  the  truth  of  it.     And  I  give  this  as  only  a  fair 
representation  of  justice  in  any  and  all  dealing  we  may 
have  with  the  Canadian  officials  governing  the  Yukon  Ter- 
ritory. 
This,  like  in  the  case  of  Dr.  Sawbones,  has  broken  the 


SA.Vrh'L  SAW'JiONKS,   M.  D, 


173 


5» 


backbone  of  scores  of  good  honest  minors  ami  driven  them 
out  of  tlie  country  in  poverty  and  distress.  Only  tliose 
Americans  who  have  ^n»nd  chiiins  or  a  footliohl  in  m\ 
estahlislied  bnsi?i('ss  can  in'  iinhurd  to  remain  in  the  coun- 
try, and  very  few  I'r  i!i  t:;i'  ciit-ide  feel  at  liberty  to  come 
in.  Come,  Dr.  Sawixnics,  ( iitcr  up.  We  arc  in  the  same 
boat.  As  you  were  j)('rs(>euted  rather  than  prosecuted, 
thus  have  most  of  us  suflered  aiul  we  still  live.  Cheer  up, 
my  boy;  not  that  there  is  a  day  of  jud<,Mnent  and  of  re- 
taliation coming,  but  on  general  principles  of  manhood. 
Read  your  prayers,  my  hoy.  Hcud  "From  the  crafts  and 
the  assaults  of  thtt  devil,  good  Lord  deliver  mc;  from 
hypocrisy,  from  envy,  haired  and  malice,  and  all  unchar- 
itableness,  from  all  the  deceits  of  the  world,  the  llesh  and 
the  devil,  good  Lord  deliver  me!"  You  will  feel  bettvU* 
after  that,  I  am  sure. 

In  the  matter  of  Dr.  Sawbones'  imprisonment,  this  wa.-^ 
not  for  any  persistency  or  obstinacy  in  (piitting  ])ractiee, 
for  he  had  quit  and  had  all  arrangements  complete  for 
going  home,  but  solely  on  the  ground — the  accusation  that 
he  persisted  in  allowing  the  public  to  see  he  was  a  doctor. 


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iMMsangnsitiii^*^''  ■• 


174 


TUE  DECLINE  AND  FALL  OF 


h'&. 


|. 


SAiMUEL  SAWBONES— HIS  LECTURE. 

With  the  tliirty  tliousaiul  ciu'ccliokcrH  who  caino  down 
tht!  Yukon  Hivor  in  May  uiul  .luno  of  181>S  canio  NoUa, 
tho  ward  and  swcolhoart  of  Dr.  Sanuu'l  Sawboni's,  She 
came  ovcrHowin<^  with  ^ood-wiil,  i'nthu.<iasin,  and  devo- 
tion. She  cnnio  nmcli  h.'.^s  girli.^h  and  much  more  woman- 
ish than  he  liad  k'ft  her.  She  camo  outliltcd  fully  and 
favorably.  He  rccoivod  Iut  with  love  and  alfoction.  He 
Korvod  licr  fondly  and  proudly.  Patiently  he  horc  with 
her  clum^'os,  her  frailties,  her  faneies.  He  did  not  en- 
croach u[)on  any  whims  she  had  contracted  in  her  enthu- 
Kiasm  for  wonum's  rights.  Yet  he  felt  kei'iily  the  di.s- 
tinction  of  lier  seatini;  herself  opposite  him  rather  tiian 
by  lii.s  side  as  of  old.  The  matter  of  bein;;'  talked  at  did 
not  seem  quite  like  liaviu',''  lier  sit  by  his  side  listenin;]^. 
Her  innovation  of  rijjjht  and  title  to  be  heard  as  well  as 
seen  did  not  especially  disturb  him,  as  ho  was  fond  of 
cftmpanionship  next  to  love.  Her  innovations  upon  dress 
startled  him  a  bit,  not  from  its  distortions  nor  from  its 
iinfitiK'ss  for  the  occasion,  for  the  hideous  combination  of 
Yukon  hood,  ki'.ee  skirt,  and  ^nim  boots  prevailing  on  our 
streets  could  not  bo  rivaled  in  u-rlinoss,  but  from  its  con- 
tra claims  to  health  and  utility.  She  had  abandoned  her 
corsets,  according  to  an  edict  from  the  ruling  set  of  her 
new  woman  club.  Xow,  if  anything  is  a  flaunting  red 
flag  to  Samuel,  it  is  nonsensical  perversion  of  health  lines. 
He  has  ever  upheld  corsets  as  a  woman's  first  host  friend, 
and  had  even  M-ritten  an  essay  upon  its  merit.  He  be- 
scechcd  her  good  graces  to  lend  ear  to  his  essay,  and  so 


SAMUEL  It  A  WBONES,  M.  D. 


175 


unique,  so  unusual,  so  individual  are  the  arguments  favor- 
ing corsets  or  lacing  that  we  follow  with  his  discourse. 


THE  COUSET. 


;,  1 


Once  while  roaming  where  woman  doctors  scarce  ever 
tread  I  heard  one,  evidently  un  cstray,  lecture,  ostcnsihly 
for  some  charitable  socictv,  in  rcalitv  to  iulvcrtist'  herself — 
a  manner  and  means  common  to  men  of  the  profession  us 
well.  True  to  her  nature  and  true  to  my  own  prophecy, 
lier  eloquence  was  in  most  part  exhausted  upon  corsets 
and  high  heels. 

Of  course  her  arguments  were  as  threadbare  as  the 
shabbiest  corset  hidden  in  her  enthusiastic  audience,  yet 
the  applause  from  unmarried  men  and  very  much  mar- 
ried women  was  long  and  loud.  I  will  not  quote  her  ver- 
batim, for  every  argument  in  existence  against  cors"ts  has 
been  sung  so  often  by  every  woman  doctor  and  by  every 
old-womanish  doctor,  by  every  candidate  for  notoriety  in 
fashion  and  magazine,  by  every  chronic  female  reformer, 
the  Jcnness  Miller  disciples  especially,  that  a  stereotyped 
copy  can  be  had  from  any  of  these  sources. 

Deformity  in  woman's  physical  being  from  the  use  of 
corsets  figures  as  its  chiefest  outrage.  Ill  shape  of  the 
body  is  painted  in  grcwsome  colors.  The  departure  of  the 
beauty  lines  of  Venus  de  Medici  is  deplored,  bemoaned 
with  all  the  eloquence  of  the  art  critic.  And  yet — and 
yet  the  gaze  of  the  mass  of  men,  jurists,  divines,  artists 
too,  will  rivet  upon  the  athletic  grace  of  the  snugly  laced 
girl  of  to-day,  while  all  the  Venus  models  in  the  array  of 
present  prevailing  apparel  will  go  begging  for  recogni- 
tion. 

The  perversion  of  beauty  disposed  of  and  resolutions 
of  condolence  for  the  sad  departed  duly  passed,  this  Sal- 


y 


■fmfaMKM 


IHf IIIIW  WllH 


176 


THE  DECLINE  AND  FALL  OF 


vation  Army  coplain  cniiips  about  tlio  vital  organs — the 
livor,  lungs,  heart,  and  liond.  She  hogiris  hy  preaching  a 
funeral  sermon.  Slnnigo,  for  the  "rcsiirrcrtionist''  at 
the  university  used  to  furnish  us  with  suhjocts  without 
distinction  as  to  sex,  and  our  professor  of  anatomy  used  to 
demonstrate  his  suhjeet,  as  to  size,  shape,  position,  from 
the  female  subject  as  hc'wcuiid  from  tiic  male.  I  cannot 
recall  ever  having  seen  a  patient  cmbjirrasFed  by  a  crushed 
liver,  a  bruised  spleen,  a  mashed  heart.  I  have  yet  to 
witness  a  consultation  of  dfxtorH  discussing  the  possibili- 
ties of  one  of  tliesc  conditions  as  the  result  of  corsets. 
Then  the  advanced  freaks  in  this  army  against  our  littlo 
inquisitor  cheeked  in  the  resolution  that  woman's  beauty, 
health  and  comfort  dep(>nd  npon  the  extermination  of  the 
corset.  As  to  this  last — comfort — you  may  all  speak 
for  yourselves. 

Concluding  you  are  all  familiar  with  the  line  of  argu- 
ments, the  general  details,  against  corsets,  without  further 
rehearsal  I  will,  in  the  languago  of  my  friends  of  the 
legal  fraternity,  proceed  with  rebuttal  testimony.  With 
your  indulgence  I  will  occupy  my  time  with  purely  scien- 
tific and  practical  facts. 

Woman  has  some  distinctive  anatomical  features,  just 
as  she  has  some  emotitmal  furores  and  freaks  peculiar  to 
herself.     The   top   of   her  chest   proportionately    is   very 
much  larger  than  that  of  a  man ;  the  bottom  measurement 
very  much  less.     ITer  waist  lino  is  verj'  much  less  than 
his,  if  man  has  anytliing  like  a  waist  line  at  all.     ITer  hip 
measure  is  very  much  greater.       These  arc  anatomical 
creations,  not  deformities.     And  will  any  one  reading  pre- 
sume to  suggest  that  these  distinctions  are  not  special  for 
her  existence,  that    they  are    embryonic,  which    nature 
thinks  need  not  be  corre(;ted?     Then  we  must  call  up  the 
physiological  attendant  of  these  physical  differences. 


SAMVI'X  HAWliONICS,  M.  D. 


i:r 


-the 


Conipiircd  with  iiinn,  woninn's  top  clicst  in  not  only  oxtra 
lurgo,  Ijut  extra  iiinliilc  aiid  cxpuii.'ibk' ;  licr  lowor  du'st  is 
not  only  cxtni  Minall,  but  rxtrii  iiiiiiKthilo  or  lixcd.  Agiiiii 
is  this  uccith'iit  or  doos  it  nuan  smiu'thin^?  'riicse  aro 
conditions  ahsohitolv  n«H'('ssarv,  with  her  nrcsiTit  status 
in  civilization,  to  the  succi'ssl'iil  acconiplishnu'nts  of  wom- 
anhood. Tlio  small  waist  lino  is  necessary  to  servo  in 
part  ns  a  partition  between  chest  organs  and  ab(h)minal 
organs;  it  is  something  approaching  a  floor  for  the  vital 
organs.  Jler  breathing  is  purely  cliesl  breatiiing  through 
the  given  features,  witli  protection  to  her  reproductive* 
organs.  And  the  cf)nij)liiueiit  is  returned  wlien  such 
organs  may  bo  brought  to  niiikc  inroads  upon  the  free 
breathing  and  the  easy  thi'obbing  of  tlie  heart  so  vital  to 
life  and  health.  It  is  inii)racticahle  to  go  into  further 
details,  but  the  sinij)lest  can  understand. 

Thus  nature  has  planned  woman,  hut  left  to  her  own 
resources  she  fails  to  build  well,  'i'he  woman  of  to-day 
has  backbone  figuratively  speaking,  yet  has  not  the  spine 
requisite  to  ease  her  through  all  tlio  trials  and  triiiuhi' 
tions  of  domestic  life  and  society  \\\u\  the  cares  and  ex- 
haustions of  business  and  literature  with  which  she  chooses 
to  burden  herself.  Old  Dr.  Sayere,  of  Xew  York,  has 
spent  a  life  in  making  artificial  plaster  of  Paris  .spines 
for  womaidvind;  the  masseur  is  becoming  a  daily  necessity 
for  developing  what  muscle  she  has  left  by  kneading  and 
rubbing;  electricity  must  be  applied  to  restore  energy  to 
it;  above  all,  the  dn'ssmaker  must  lend  her  art  toward 
artificial  aid  and  supjxirts.  This  last  is  the  simplest 
proposition  in  her  existence.  The  corset  is  the  chiefest 
of  her  aids,  the  most  bountiful  of  her  blessings. 

You  hear  geese  babble  about  interfering  with  nature 
and  corrupting  nature's  work,  and  the  nasty  false  teeth  of 
these  clatter  while  they  talk.     They  look  through  spec- 


/  i 


1 


smf^yj- 


178 


TUB  DKriANK  AND  FALL  OF 


taclcs  to  upj)lau{l  naturo,  no!  (liinking  tlioy  themselves  are 
trying  to  outwit  nature,  ^'<>u  will  have  heard  all  sorts  of 
ar;,Mnii<'rits,  Hcicutiflc,  relij^ious,  and  profants  advanced 
a;,Minst  poor  wunuin's  ir>frin;;einent  of  nature  in  this  par- 
ticular. Ono  fool  doctor  makes  an  attempt  at  a  physio- 
logical cas(!  apiinst  her  throu;;li  the  test  and  comparison 
of  an  Indian  woman — "a  pure,  untrammeUd  !«pe(inien  of 
miturc's  own  creation."  lie  emidoyed  a  civil  cn^'iiu'cr  to 
imiko  dia;,'rams  of  her,  ^'ivin;,'  an;:!es  and  curves,  rises  und 
falls,  proportions  and  relations;  and  1  am  not  sure  but 
that  they  imissacrcd  her  I'or  tlu'  post-mortctn  notes,  so  accu- 
rate in  detail  was  he  and  so  positive  that  sujovmo  nature 
Fj)urns  the  wear  and  tear  id'  corsets.  I'oor  delusion  !  Why, 
the  Indian  wonum  is  only  a  heast  of  hurden.  She  does 
man's  work  and  in  conseipience  she  has  much  of  man's 
make-up.  Her  chest  and  ahdoniinal  walls  are  bo  devel- 
oped that  ono  could  cut  a  steak  out  of  them.  Her  cor- 
sets would  need  he  hif^  in  the  middle,  thereby  defeating; 
any  pood  hoped  for. 

All  sorts  of  damj)hool  ar;,'umeids  are  thus  advanced. 
Then,  to  sum  up,  what  are  his  deductions?  Why,  that 
tliis  Indian  woman  is  the  model  for  procreatin;:^  the  spe- 
cies and  of  perfect  health.  Well,  \w  is  a  preat  liar  in  this. 
In  botli  conclusions  he  is  wiont^.  I  am  familiar  with  In- 
dian life,  and  without  olferin;,'  recorded  statistics  I  pre- 
sent as  facts  taken  from  tli(>  h]skimo  and  other  Indian 
tribes  alon^j  the  Yukon  the  followiiif;:  These  Indians  are 
P'eater  victims  to  consumption  than  any  other  pcoi)lo  re- 
corded, and  they  are  less  procreative  than  any  other  1  know, 
it  being  unusual  for  any  family  to  have  more  tlian  two 
children. 

Tn  the  matter  of  consumption,  this  is  not  due  to  the 
climate,  for  the  whites  cominfj  up  here  arc  notably  free 
from  coughs,  colds,  or  lung  troubles.     Then  what  docs  he 


sA}rrKL  sAwnnxF:s,  ,\r  d. 


no 


prove?  Only  tlint  ho  is  n  ton-pot  ninkinp  n  hipsinpf  noisn 
to  ainuso  n  bovy  of  old  lady  ira-ilrinkiTs.  Nature,  no 
doiil)t,  provides  tlie  plan  for  the  dcvi'Iopment  of  Indintis 
as  well  as  he  does  for  the  civili/A'd  woman,  hut  she  depends 
upon  the  arts  and  sciences  of  eivili/atinn  for  her  livin;; 
and  she  must  huild  according'  to  the  demands  of  these. 
If  she  he  a  master  musou  sho  will  build,  of  course,  after  the 
temple  fashion. 

Tho  lower  chest  wall  in  woman  is  almost  immohile;  Iht 
breathing  expands  upward,  that  sho  may  not  hear  down 
upon  the  roj)roduetive  orpins;  the  orpms  of  cither  com- 
partment of  the  body  infrin^'in;;  upon  the  territory  of  the 
other  impair  its  vitality,  its  functions,  and  nature  even  is 
handica|)ped.  If  woman  were  created  for  her  own  amuse- 
ment, for  her  own  existence,  for  her  own  sup|)ort,  then  sho 
might  be  nuule  not  oidy  from  the  rib  of  man,  but  shaped 
likewise  after  him,  but  inasmuch  as  she  must  grow  and 
mold  the  race,  she  must  necessarily  bo  patterned  to  mako 
her  oflice  practicable.  She  needs  be  a  double  compartment, 
one  mo<leled  to  protect  her  own  life  and  insure  her  own 
comfort;  the  other  to  insure  the  life  and  growth  of  her 
ward. 

'Tis  too  funny  to  hear  tho  arguments  of  the  crusado 
of  tho  corset.  Tho  religious  crusade  of  tho  Dark  Ages 
was  no  more  vigorous  nor  popular,  no  more  ridiculous. 
One  medical  man  who  claims  to  have  treated  3,000  women 
wrote  a  pamphlet  on  the  ''lielation  of  Dress  to  Pelvic  Dis- 
eases." lie  invents  a  measuring  machine  by  which  ho  can 
readily  obtain  results  to  corroborate  his  notions.  llo 
measures  men,  Chinese  women,  Indian  women,  civilized 
women,  and  dogs.  'Tis  a  fact  in  his  figures  that  tho  ab- 
dominal breathing  gives  a  one  like  tracing  for  men,  In- 
dian women,  Chinese  women,  and  dogs,  and  a  one  tracing 
for  civilized  woman.     Then  he  disputes  anatomists  and 


)    i 


M>e.»\* 


.^■.ilm    «i»i 


180 


THE  DECLINE  AND  FALL  OF 


'■■:  \ 


l\ 


!     I 


physiologists  who  tcacli  that  woman  natiirally  breathes 
by  way  of  expanding  hor  chest,  calling  it  costal  breathing, 
saying  it  is  perversion  of  nature.  He  quotes  the  girl  still 
breathing  by  expanding  the  stomach,  and  says  she  assumes 
the  modern  female  breathing  only  with  the  age  of  cor.-ets. 
Fool!  Why  does  he  not  tell  us  the  girl  naUirally  awk- 
ward wit'"*  big  hands  and  feet  is  made  of  angles  instead  of 
curves,  and  runs  and  climbs  and  uses  her  arms,  and  body, 
and  chest,  and  muscles  like  her  primitive  ancestors?  At 
womanhood  she  is  absolutely  a  ditlerent  creature  by  na- 
ture. Corsets  do  not  make  her  an  elegant  figure;  she 
dons  corsets  to  support  it,  to  retain  it.  And  after  all  his 
experiments  and  all  his  arguments  to  prove  that  the  prim- 
itive wonum,  that  the  typical  woman,  the  model  woman 
of  oven  to-day  naturally  assumes  abdominal  breathing  as 
does  the  Indian  woman,  man,  and  dog,  what  shall  he  have 
gained?  lie  nnist  accept  the  observation  of  another  med- 
ical scientist,  greater  than  himself,  which  concludes  that 
woman  is  nmch  less  sust'('])tiblc  to  consumption  than  is 
man  because  of  her  costal  or  top  chest  breathing.  Any 
one  may  know  that  the  extreme  top  of  one's  lung,  the 
apex,  is  cooped  up  in  a  bony  hive  with  little  or  no  elbow 
room;  the  conscqu«.nce  is  an  extremely  limited  expansion. 
Right  here  in  this  quarter  do  we  always  look  for  the  first 
footprint  of  consumption.  Then  when  you  dissect  poor 
man's  shoulder  that  is  bound  down  by  all  possible  strength 
in  muscles  and  tendons,  tissues  of  various  kinds  which, 
knitted  together,  give  him  the  great  strength  he  needs  in 
his  being  man,  you  will  find  the  whole  upper  lobe  of  the 
lung  much  tied  down,  much  cooped  up  and  compressed  in 
its  function.  Therefore  the  disease,  germinating  in  the 
apex,  has  a  fair  open  field  for  extension.  And  thus  poor 
man  is  much  the  more  frequent  victim  to  the  monster. 
Beauty  runs  too  close  a  race  with  intelligence  in  the 


SAMUEL  8 A  WD0NK8,  M.  D. 


181 


th 
f-lv, 
ill 
ho 
in 
be 


afTcctionp  of  mm  to  allow  of  its  neglect.  E?pccially  tho 
iiinn  of  intollrctual  pursuits  at  the  end  of  his  day's  doin^^s 
finds  himself  mentally  exluiuslod  and  seeks  most  for  ree- 
rontion  in  heauty ;  and  he  tends  much  to  marry  beauty. 
\Vc  must  all  see  more  beauty  in  tho  corset  form  than  in 
tho  beer-ke;;  form,  in  our  modern  women  than  in  the  In- 
dian physi(iue.  r>eauly  is  the  subject  of  all  son^j^,  while 
mind  is  in  favor  with  all  crank  essays.  I  doubt  if  there  is 
a  knight  of  this  age  who  would  have  women  patterned 
after  man  or  dog,  one  but  who  would  throw  down  his 
armor  and  her  cause  in  the  event  of  such  transition. 

Crant  that  we  have  proven  that  the  cry  of  deformity  is 
a  fancy  of  the  imagination;  that  distorted  and  hampered 
internal  organs  are  a  myth;  that  tho  costal  breathing  of 
our  civilized  woman  is  immunity  from  certain  diseases; 
that  upon  theoretical  and  practical  grounds  tho  woman  of 
to-day  secures  through  her  artificial  supports  and  pro- 
tections necessities  and  advantages  in  functions  of  des- 
tiny; let  us  listen  for  further  proofs  from  her  own  per- 
sonal experiences.  Does  she  complain  that  her  liver  is 
cramped  into  a  jelly,  or  her  heart  is  crowded  up  into  her 
mouth,  or  her  breath  is  cut  short  off,  or  that  her  dinner 
spoils  for  want  of  eating?  What  are  her  agonies?  Her 
digestion  averages  quite  as  good  as  does  her  male  friends; 
her  capacity  and  endurance  on  the  ice  pond  and  dancing 
floors  wear  out  her  escort;  her  laugh  in  tho  sleighing 
party  is  as  loud  and  ringing  as  tho  youth  who  may  bo 
adding  pounds  to  tho  pressure  of  her  corset-strings;  and 
after  tho  ball  she  can  cat  as  much  oyster  soup  or  ice  cream 
as  the  biggest  man.  What  is  the  rule  as  to  tho  wear  of 
corsets?  Why,  the  great  bulk  of  voice  cries:  "'Tis  most 
comfortable,  most  necessary!''  Its  good  points  would 
make  a  long  essay.  It  buoys  up  tho  breasts  of  woman 
and  saves  her  from  drag  and  stoop ;  it  strengthens  her  back 


vSSc-,MJhM 


>.A.<u*-^,  •*0ii  «i^^ 


'ini^a 


182 


I     ' 


t  ^ 


TSB  DECLme  AND  FALL  OF 


•in<l  fiipporfa  it  in  (.vpw1a„  .  •* 

:''"-'"<'.ns  that  U  ol  rj  ,  :  t  "1  ^'^™^'  ''- 
"'■'^'"■cs  it  against  di..oa«c  ZlTf  ,  P'""'  '="'""'".  ""d 
'•f  ™t  the  groat  ^a^^rih  „  fr*"  l''''  •"'•  ^  -P" 
Bhnon,  luxury.  I  say  i'  t "  "  ^  '"•^'  ">«  corset  is  a 
mined  from  observation  '       "  """''''  °^  ^oot  dder- 

No«-,  can  there  be  a  fool  to  think  if  „• 
the  u,.c  of  eorscts  she  wonb    n  'V  """^  ''"'^  barred 

pictured   to  us   as     e  Uh   .,  d'T'  ?'  «°"^  ^'™t  -■■•!■'' 
breathing  substituted  for  eoTat    "T  f    '■'"'   "''''""''"'" 
create  as  free  and  as  easy  asTe  ,  n       "'  ''''  "■<""'''  Pro- 
^^  "  i.^  a  simple  notion  thtl,      ''""""'  "'  *''=  f"-'«'-' 
the  result  of  Jaein^     It  -f  •    v  ^''"'"^  '-^P"  "*  '"i.'^t  is 
">"reh  "f  eivi!i.„tio;-U  i     n" h:";""'''^""  Srouih,  the 
good  medical  authority  talk     ill      D  "^  "■"'""«"•     % 
of  this  elaborate  essa/  tl  u      "r       fT''  "'  ""^  ^""^•'"^'o" 

that  if  eiyili.ed  ^votlZm     T\      ''""''  *'''  ''''''^' 
Physieal  habits  of  the  ly'  "         '"P'  '"""'  "^  the  active 
=>;ch  a  manner  as  to  se";'  hr'™  ""''  "-^  dress  in 
of  muscular  moyementt  1     '"''^•:  *'"=  ^""'^  freedom 
"■ould  bo  as  free  from  ne    L  / "  ""'^  ''"'^'^■''  *'-y 

^omcn  of  the  forests  who  c  ."'"'''  ^'  '"'^  ^^^  hardy 
brothers  in  the  fie;^e  I :,;  ^ftrT- T^"'''  "'"'^  "-' 
«s  respond:  "A  thing  deyouth-  to T  '"'[''"'■"  Some  of 
"f  ^s  might  enjoy  l.ryinTwom™  m  ""l*"'  ^"^•'"  ^^•™y 
centuries  back,  o^  thit  of  t?  ''"  '''""  P'^ce  of  a  fe^ 

the  tepee  rais;d  oy  ^^      tl^^'r  '"*""'  ^""  '-P 
-ep  the  larder  stored,    ook  'lef  tb"  T  *'"  '"""  ^^ 
horses-,yhilo,yeonIys;nrof  tfo    ,  ""^"^t^-our  war 

the  council  fire.     Yei  tt  ""n  ""'^  '^•™^<=^  before 

,'^  -«he  is  and  toil  for  h     tft   ,,?'"  """"  ''''''  ^-^^ 
hcanty.  keep  a  house  oyer  he,  \  ^'r*'-"'"  ^cr  superior 

^""'^------d^Si,s:;-td1Ssr 


•"•  • ..» '-^ 


SAMUEL  8A  WBONES,  M.  D. 


183 


may  be  good-naturod,  groom  her  ft  hor?e  for  oxorcipo  and 
exhibition,  bear  all  \\\o  ImlTs  and  rcbulTs  of  oxistonce  to 
pavo  her  from  degenerating,  as  our  author  would  have,  to 
the    hig-bellied,   bowlegged   scjuaw. 

We  again  refer  to  deformities.  Almost  the  total  force 
of  corset-wearing  women  will  have  an  exact  symmotrieal 
measurement,  will  measure  alike  in  proportion,  and  their 
anatomy  will  conform  to  the  teaching  ol"  our  medical  pro- 
fessors. Granted  that  a  woman  laces  too  tight;  what  are 
the  consequences?  Suppose  a  surgeon  treating  a  fracture 
removes  his  dressings  at  night  only,  to  keep  the  limb  under 
control  during  the  day;  would  that  leg  or  arm  conform  to 
his  daily  splints?  Not  any  more  will  the  compressed  waist 
conform  to  the  tight  corset.  The  woman  may  wear  tight 
lacing  all  of  every  day,  yet  night  will  settle  every  rib  in 
its  right  place.  The  worst  that  can  occur  is  a  given 
amount  of  discomfort  and  some  functional  disturbances 
in  breathing  and  digestion. 

However,  our  arguments  come  from  the  standpoint  of 
the  simple  every-day  fitting  corset.  We  ask  corsets  to  be 
fitted  something  after  the  manner  of  your  shoes.  Some 
idiots  will  wear  shoes  so  tight  that  they  agonize;  others 
wear  them  so  loose  that  their  slipshod  move  rubs  the  feet 
full  of  corns.  Do  we  condemn  shoes?  Most  people  find 
most  comfort  in  wearing  their  shoes  snug — almost  tight 
to  tlieir  feet.  Some  women  there  are  who  do  wear  th(>ir 
c;)rsets  too  tight,  yet  I  have  never  seen  a  deformity  re- 
sulting, nor  a  disease  established,  nor  a  life  shortened. 
Ah,  yes,  we  hear  of  them  all  around  us,  but  we  never  sec 
tliem.  Some  women  wear  their  corsets  too  loose  or  too  ill- 
fitting;  in  consequence  they  punish  their  ribs  and  stom- 
achs and  hides  and  spines  more  by  the  irregular  pressure 
and  motion  than  results  from  tight  squeezing.  These 
continually  say  oh,  my !  and  seek  their  homes  that  they 


<l 


■»ii<i-«S'»i*S^'  ■ 


2*ai-ri'*'- 


184 


THE  DECLINE  AND  FALL  OF 


I    n 


\\ 


iiuiy  got  out  of  them ;  but  the  good,  sensible  majority  of 
v.()!:i('!i  wear  snug  corsets  tight  enougli  to  keep  tlieir  ribs 
C()in|)ar!ilively  immovable  at  the  lower  border,  ar.d  tlieir 
stomachs  steadied  and  their  waist  lines  well  guarded,  their 
(•lu's<s  supported  more  or  less  upon  their  hii)s,  their  sj)ines 
straightened  and  strengthened,  their  abdominal  muscles 
held  taut;  then  they  will  eat,  drink,  and  be  merry  with- 
out having  to  seek  comfort  by  relaxation  y,i  a  cigar,  by 
soda  and  brandy  as  a  stomachic,  or  by  opening  a  lower 
vest  button  to  bo  able  to  sing. 

In  the  matter  of  diseascjs  following  in  the  wake  of  cor- 
sets I  cannot  enlighten  you.  The  anti-corset  crank  would 
have  us  say  there  are  myriads,  all  most  deadly.  What 
and  where  they  are  [  cannot  conceive.  I  think  a  nice- 
looking  liver  pad  stuffed  wilh  sawdust  or  an  electric  belt 
made  of  shoddy  and  cojjjjcr  wire,  for  which  you  would  bo 
made  pay  $10,  would  cure  all  the  diseases.  When  a  man 
chooses  to  take  a  good  dose  of  exercise,  either  walking  or 
horseback,  ho  is  constrained  to  gird  up  his  loins  with  a 
rope  or  belt,  not  blessed  with  a  corset.  Is  it  fancy  or 
fashion  and  the  outgrowth  of  necessity  from  experience? 
Do  not  refer  us  back  to  Mr'.  Lo,  whose  untutored  mind 
is  not  ready  to  grasp  littlo  luxuries,  who  rides  without  belt 
because  his  stomach  is  so  much  larger  than  his  head  that 
the  belt  would  continually  annoy  him  by  slip])ing  off. 

Yes,  numerous  women  are  tortured  by  corsets.  Many 
m.en  and  women  are  tortured  1)y  shoes.  Let  them  off. 
The  corset  needs  be  used  as  a  prophylactic  medicine  rather 
than  a  curative  agent.  Some  women  will  not  bear  the  force 
of  a  corset-string  nor  the  unnatural  pressure  of  a  full 
breath.  Some  cannot  be  fitted  as  is  necessary  to  insure 
them  aid  and  comfort.  The  sick  woman  must  be  disrobed 
and  prescribed  for;  she  who  is  ailing  must  be  protected 
and  aided  by  special  ajDpliances  and  means  suggested  by 


\ 


■i.. 


1  ^-'jT^.ik^^  ^» 


8AM  U EL  SAWBONES,  M.  D. 


185 


her  ppocial  capo.  Slip  must  not  woar  corsets  nor  lace  her 
gowns.  It  is  from  the  sick  and  afllictcd  whom  harpers  and 
doctors  and  crank?  got  their  data.  A  sick  woman  con- 
demns a  corset;  a  sick  man  discards  his  best  friend,  cigar. 
It  is  from  the  disoii«;o  that  the  irrational  talk  emanates 
which  would  prove  a  woman  after  nature  is  only  so  by 
her  exclusion  of  the  corset. 

My  medical  authority  of  the  pamphlet  says:  In  Ger- 
many the  peasant  woman  toils  beside  her  liusband;  in 
France  I  saw  women  digging  ditches  with  men ;  in  Italy 
the  cow  pulls  an  equal  burden  with  the  ox.  Xo  corsets 
on  any  of  these.  As  before  related,  tubercular  disease 
of  the  lung  has  almost  a  universal  starting-point  in  the 
a])ox — in  the  top  of  the  lung.  Why?  Because  of  its  less 
development,  its  loss  activity.  !Man  in  his  original  state 
used  his  all  fours — ran,  climbed,  played,  worked,  clubbed 
his  wife,  carried  his  children.  It  was  not  conducive  to 
his  existence,  his  ha})piness,  if  you  choose,  that  his  shoul- 
der joints  and  their  muscular  ligamentous  union  and 
support  should  be  embarrassed  by  a  heaving,  expanding, 
movable  chest.  Consequently  the  base  of  his  lungs  were 
made  large  and  expansible,  his  lower  chest  and  belly  flex- 
ible. In  his  descent  (I  liolieve  that  is  the  way  scientists 
put  it)  he  retains  these  chanicteristics  as  he  retains  his 
primitive  avocat'ons  and  uses  for  the  same  arms.  As  lord 
of  creation  of  to-day  he  preserves  his  mastery  by  the 
mighty  right  arm  and  subsists  chiefly  by  it;  and  it  is 
necessary  that  his  upper  chest  still  remains  limited  in 
action,  that  extremities  lose  not  their  cunning.  Until 
maehinery  is  invented  to  relieve  man  of  all  physical  labor 
he  ever  will  be  built  solid,  compact,  with  limited  upper 
chest  movement;  he  ever  will  be  held  responsible  for  more 
frequent  consumption.  Woman,  whom  civilization  has 
emancipated  from  building  the  romantic  tepee  and  from 


V«iik-    .  ^v      .U; ^ 


186 


TUE  DECLINE  AND  FALL  OF 


difjfjinff  (litchop,  and  wlio  is  forgottin^  bread-making  and 
gardening,  can  afford  to  tlirow  off  the  shackles  of  con- 
pnmption.  She  can  grow,  as  security  against  it,  a  large, 
expansive  bust,  one  interesting  as  well  as  healthy.  All 
of  what  I  say  must  not  be  considered  simply  amusing,  for 
every-day  life  illustrates  me.  What  is  the  command  to 
the  raw  recruit  of  war,  his  first  drill?  "Chest  forward." 
What  is  the  order  of  the  gvmnast  ?  "Throw  out  vour 
chest."  And  the  mother  to  the  kid  and  tomboy?  "Shoul- 
ders back."  And  the  doctor's  warning?  "Expand  that 
chest."  And  when  he  measures  you  for  a  health  certifi- 
cate he  measures  where — around  your  belly?  Around  the 
top  of  your  thorax,  of  course.  He  carefully  notes  the 
inches  and  half  inches  and  quarters  and  takes  never  a 
glimpse  of  regions  below. 

Men  who  do  not  do  work  with  their  arms  and  shoulders 
throw  back  their  shoulders  both  as  a  matter  of  health  and 
beauty.  W^oman — sometimes  she  does  not  brace  up  and 
present  a  bold  front,  yet  the  law  of  expansion  is  unflinch- 
ing and  the  twenty  or  thirty  cubic  inches  of  fresh  air  re- 
quires her  to  make  room  for  it.  Pressure  down  upon  the 
pelvic  organs  cannot  be  according  to  her  taste,  certainly  is 
not  according  to  her  need.  The  Great  Architect  has 
planned  her  upon  a  fine  principle,  and  she  necessarily  is 
kind  to  herself  and  encourages  it.  She  stays  her  abdo- 
men and  lower  ribs  and  encourages  the  lungs  to  adopt  the 
expansion  of  the  upper  chamber.  The  chest  takes  kindly 
to  this,  the  natural,  healthy  way,  and  needs  no  forcing,  no 
coaxing;  resulting  is  immunity  from  consumption,  de- 
velopment of  form  and  emotions  and  their  attendants. 

But  the  dear  good  medical  harpers  on  this  subject  must 
needs  be  administered  to  scientifically  to  put  them  retreat- 
ing, must  not  be  fooled  by  any  simple  talk.  Well,  one 
of  the  latest  anatomists,  certainly  one  of  the  very  best. 


SAMUEL  SAWBONES,  M  D. 


187 


ly  IS 
has 

ly  is 

)do- 
the 

ndly 
no 
de- 
ls. 


one 
est, 


illustrates  the  l)uild  and  tho  action  of  tlio  thorax  in  tlio 
following  expression:  "Sinco  the  first  six  rilts  present 
convex  lower  borders,  fjive  ori^'in  to  the  pectoralis  major 
muscle  (an  elevator  of  the  ril»s),  and  move  upward  in  in- 
spiration, and  since  the  last  six  ribs  present  concave  lower 
borders,  give  origin  to  the  diai'lira^nn  (a  depressor  of  the 
ribs),  and  move  downward  in  inspiration,  no  ol)jection 
can  be  urged  to  the  use  of  tlie  term  upper  ribs  to  desig- 
nate the  former  group  or  tlie  use  of  h)wer  ril)s  to  (h'signato 
the  latter."  If  you  understand  tliat  the  ril»s  circle  around 
outward  and  downward  from  their  atlachments,  you  will 
comprehend  that  any  movement  given  them  will  be  out- 
ward and  upward  or  else  downward  and  inward.  Then 
the  six  upper  ribs  move  out  and  up.  This  involves  tho 
chest  to  several  inches  below  the  nipple;..  Those  below — 
the  lower  ribs — are  controlled  by  the  diaphragm. 

Dalton's  "Physiology"  says  of  the  diaphragm:  "When 
muscular  fibers  contract,  as  in  inspiration,  they  draw  the 
central  tendon  downward,  depressing  the  abdominal  organs 
and  enlarging  the  cavity  of  the  chest  in  a  vertical  direc- 
tion." At  the  same  time  it  would  seemingly  draw  the 
lower  ribs  down  and  in,  and  only  that  their  attachments 
are  not  firm  this  would  be  the  case;  but  the  conformation 
is  such  that  they  cannot  be  expanded.  This  is  sliown  by 
actual  measurement  to  be  the  fact.  A  woman  expands 
at  the  waist  lino  during  natural  respirations  simply  one- 
eighth  inch  in  circumference:  at  forced  inspirations,  pos- 
sibly through  help  of  her  abdominal  muscles,  one  inch. 
The  same  woman  has  a  top-chost  expansion  of  three  to  five 
inches.  You  will  agree  that  it  must  take  very  tight  lacing 
indeed  to  embarrass  that  one-eighth  inch  about  the  waist. 
Aside  from  the  law  that  it  is  tho  higher  development,  a 
simple  conformity  to  nature  ought  to  compel  us  to  rely 
upon  the  upper-chest  breathing  in  order  that  we  may  pro- 


\» 


■^■HnMnBMrM 


J£1i<^ 


188 


TUE  DKVLINK  AND  FALL  OF 


'  li; 


toct  tlio  abdominal  or'.'ans  U-'Aw  tlic  "vertical  diroftion"  of 
tlio  lungs,  in  I'aco  oi"  ihjs  scifiitilic  arraiLrniin.'nt  of  tlio 
Ifrcalliiiifj^  there  is  a  uivsunietl  seiiool  oj'  d'achers  instilling 
wlial  lliey  call  a  new  theory — abdominal  bri'athing — inio 
their  class.  J  admit  tliov  do  no  harm,  for  at  most  they  ran 
only  to  a  limite-d  exlent  control  their  abdominal  muscles, 
and  from  this  scarcely  any,  if  at  all,  cU'ect  any  increase 
in  the  lower  lungs,  as  you  may  learn  by  actual  measurn- 
inent,  while  the  exertion  thev  use  in  this  is  i'ortunatelv  ex- 
liausteil  to  good  effect  upon  the  upper  lungs.  Could  they 
effect  what  they  presume,  then  they  would  be  most  dan- 
gerous to  their  class.  Such  of  you  who  kn(jw  something 
of  anatomy  will  recall  the  sluifm  and  position  of  the  lungs; 
the  upper  lobes  not  alone  overtop  the  lower,  but  overhang 
them,  and  to  prevent  end)arrassmcnt  nnist  bo  actually 
lifted  up  and  off  during  their  inflation.  Probably  I  can- 
not more  easily  cap  the  climax  against  all  damphool  argu- 
ments that  corsets  are  destruction  and  damnation  to  poor 
woman  than  by  presenting  the  following  medical  fact: 
Men,  women,  and  children  with  weak  backs,  diseased  bones, 
imperfect  muscles,  and  paralysis  are  subjected  to,  as  the 
best  treatment  of  the  day,  the  wearing  of  a  plaster  jacket. 
Do  you  know  what  this  is?  One  is  suspended,  hanged  by 
the  shoulders;  then  he  is  bandaged  with  plaster  of  Paris 
bandages,  wrapped  snug  and  taut  from  under  the  arms  to 
the  hip,  allowance  only  being  made  by  a  napkin,  after- 
ward removed,  Qver  the  stomach.  This  plaster  bandage 
is  applied  a  full  inch  in  thickness,  and  when  dried  you 
may  be  assured  does  not  expand.  This,  you  can  also  be 
assured,  could  not  be  laced  any  tighter  by  hitching  to  a 
bedpost  or  by  the  assistance  of  one's  room-mate.  And  yet 
— and  yet  these  poor  miserable  sufferers  give  up  their  aches 
and  pains,  live  comfortable,  accumulate  fat,  become  strong, 


tiAMUEL  SAWBONKS,   M.J). 


189 


ion"  of 
of  tlio 
l^Jl  ill  i  11^4 
g — into 
licy  c'iin 
iniiscU's, 
incroasG 
ncasiu'o- 
itcly  ox- 
Lild  tliey 
ost  (la!i- 
mctliing 
0  lungs; 
)vcrluing- 
actually 
y  I  can- 
)ol  argu- 
i  to  poor 
?al  fact: 
?d  bones, 
),  as  the 
r  jacket, 
jingcd  by 
lof  Paris 
arms  to 

,  after- 
baiulago 

led  you 

also  be 
Ing  to  a 

Lnd  yet 
Ur  aches 

strong, 


and  grow  well,  hooped  and  riven  by  a  dozen  corsets  in 
one. 

When  a  woman  appears  who  is  not  a  fit  subject  for  a 
corset — in  other  terms,  one  who  cannot  wear  one  because 
of  its  discomfort — no  time  should  be  lost  in  calling  for  a 
doctor  for  her.  Certainly  something  is  wrong;  if  not  a 
serious  lesion  of  some  vital  organ,  then  at  least  some  func- 
tional disturbance  or  fit  of  indigestion.  1  am  not  caring 
to  cast  a  sigh  of  disrespect  or  a  slur  of  contempt  upon 
the  band  of  women  who  do  not  wear  corsets,  but  in  good 
faith  many  of  them  are  not  physically  sound,  a  few  are 
not  mentally  sound;  most,  perhaps,  have  accustomed  them- 
Belves  to  loose  gowns,  and  when  once  initiated  into  fatigue 
dress  of  any  and  all  sorts,  gowns,  slippers,  caps,  etc.,  wo 
grow  to  fancy  it. 

There  are  many  natural  positions  for  the  human  body — 
one  for  every  phase  of  the  mind  as  well  as  for  every  degree 
of  physical  stimulation.  The  old  soldier  on  dress  parade 
is  a  beauty  (especially  the  oflicer) ;  on  his  approach  to 
battle  he  is  a  creature  without  prominent  physical  attri- 
butes, only  expression ;  after  the  conflict  he  is  little  more 
than  an  inanimate  object,  appellated  human  being.  With 
any  of  us  when  tired  from  the  fatigues  of  the  day  the  ten- 
dency is  to  be  much  out  of  joint — to  stoop,  to  droop,  to 
curtail  the  breathing — and  the  consequences?  Some  of 
us  grow  stooped,  some  crooked,  some  weak  of  lungs.  Some 
by  occupation,  some  by  physique,  maintain  themselves  in 
order.  The  vast  majority  keep  themselves  in  proper  form 
through  the  assistance  of  their  clothes  more  than  from  per- 
sonal direction.  The  man's  tailor-made  coat  keeps  his 
shoulders  back,  his  vest-buckle  curves  his  spine,  his  tight- 
fitting  boot  preserves  the  arch  and  promotes  the  elasticity 
of  his  foot ;  the  woman's  corset  gives  her  backbone  in  every 
sense  of  the  word. 


•fflffc: 


lOO 


THE  DECLINE  AND  FALL  OP 


V     4 


Savn;:fc  raros  arc  often  picturcil  to  us  as  types  of  fine 
pliysiral  formation.  Yes,  the  males  are  often  such,  be- 
cause the  males  live  u  life  of  dre-s  parade.  They  do  none 
of  the  severe  toil,  the  muscular  strain,  and  mental  ex- 
haustion that  is  the  life  of  our  enlightened  land;  but 
look  at  their  women!  We  call  them  hags,  so  haggard  and 
worn  do  they  look;  they  stooj),  they  lounge,  they  waddle, 
they  work  and  tire,  and  for  want  of  support  in  dress  as 
nHu?h  as  for  any  othi>r  cause  they  outrage  nature.  There 
is  a  lesson  here.  We  need  artificial  support  in  all  active 
life.  When  down  in  spirit  it  must  be  stimuli  or  rest; 
when  relaxed  from  exhaustion  it  must  be  stays  or  rest. 
Civilized  num  has  quite  unconsciously  fallen  into  the 
groove  worn  by  this  law.  lie  has  abandoned  the  tunic 
and  the  turban  of  the  ancients  for  his  modern  dress.  Whv? 
Not  because  of  its  fancy.  The  older  is  the  more  pictur- 
esque. Because  he  needs  a  tight  coat  to  support  his 
thorax,  a  vest-buckle  to  yank  in  his  vertebra',  a  suug- 
seated  pair  of  trousers  to  bale  up  his  llabby  Hitches;  and 
if  he  abandons  the  tight-legged  breeches  he  returns  in- 
variably in  a  few  years  to  their  kind  oilice.  Woman  with 
her  great  legs  and  mammoth  hips  does  not  need  breeches. 
It  is  quite  enough  that  she  has  corsets  as  a  platform  upon 
which  to  load  all  her  upper  self,  with  the  burdens  her 
life  imposes,  and  thus  to  rest  them  upon  her  hips.  Only 
from  her  hips  up  is  she  the  weaker  vessel.  ]\rake  woman 
clearly  a  thing  of  beauty — of  beauty  in  all  its  phases;  of 
intel'  >ct,  that  her  offspring  may  bo  brainy;  in  morals  and 
virtues,  that  the  same  offspring  may  be  lofty  and  wise; 
of  physical  being,  as  we  do  our  blooded  rare  stock,  that 
they  may  bo  lithe,  high-stepping,  swift.  The  aborigine, 
that  his  bow  should  be  elastic,  quick,  powerful,  curved  to 
its  limit  the  crude  willow  at  given  points.  Such  thin, 
Blender  places  must  be  to  insure  results.    Woman  needs 


BAMVEL  8A  WBONRS,  M.  D. 


191 


8  of  fine 
^uch,  bo- 
do  uono 
iiital  ex- 
ind ;  but 
gard  and 
'  waddle, 
dress  as 
'.     There 
ill  active 
or  rest; 
or  rest. 
into  the 
ho  tunic 
is.  Why? 
e  pictur- 
»port   his 
a  snug- 
hes ;  and 
urns  in- 
m  with 
jreeches. 
rm  upon 
ens  her 
Only 
woman 
asps;  of 
rals  and 
wise ; 
sk,  that 
origine, 
rved  to 
thin, 
needs 


the  pnme  curving,  molding,  flexions,  or  else  she  will  be 
clumsy,  useless,  like  the  crndf  limb  of  the  willow.  She 
must  turn,  twist,  bend  without  cITort,  without  agony. 
Gradually  molding  her  thus  will  liiially,  as  with  all  na- 
ture, find  it  bred  in  her.  'Tis  a  great  mistake  to  imagine 
the  woman  with  large  waist  and  promim'ut  abdomen  en- 
joying a  free  play  of  internal  organs  and  a  comfortable, 
untrammeled  display  of  vitality.  Usually  this  measure- 
ment is  due  largely  to  fat.  And  the  purpose  of  this  fat? 
I  will  tell  you:  Fat  in  one's  body  is  stored  food.  I  need 
not  tell  you  that  when  we  are  not  daily  suj)plying  the  wear 
and  tear  of  our  economy  by  direct  food  it  is  drawing  upon 
this  fat  for  subsistence.  Women  who  grow  large  around 
the  body  are  simply  building  a  warehouse  on  the  wrong 
location.  All  this  fat  will  add  to  Ix-autv  and  utility  if 
stored  upon  the  limbs — if  stored  anywhere  else  than  in 
the  place  in  question.  If  women  gave  to  themselves  a 
tithe  of  the  attention  stockmen  bestow  upon  their  animals, 
they  would  soon  people  the  world  with  beings  whom  the 
goddesses  of  old  would  envy. 

A  great  change  must  necessarily  grow,  is  growing,  ever 
has  been  growing  over  the  relative  position  of  women. 
Time  with  civilization  demonstrated  she  could  not  be  held 
the  slave  of  man — his  drudge.  It  is  illustrating  she  can- 
not be  the  co-worker,  the  common  associate  with  man. 
Many  tragical  and  devastating  events  in  history  are  writ- 
ten to  prove  that  her  aspirations  in  political  favor  always 
have  been  and  ever  will  be  gross,  absurd  failures. 


M'^«  J'  I  >.• 


t-«S-(.rf:. 


ssr 


rsmm 


f  ^  * 

M 


I9d 


THE  DSOLUIM  A2fJ)  FALL  OF 


THE  FALL  OF  SAMUEL  SAWBONES, 

ESQ.,M.D. 

Skookum  Jim  was  a  iiobluinun  in  the  defrrcncc  of  tho 
camp.     At  tho  heud  of  hia  pack  train  of  twelve  husky 
men,  each  with  forty  pounds  of  dust  on  his  back,  march- 
ing into  Dawson  from  his  di^^'^inf,'.^  Skookum  Jim  looked 
evciy  inch  a  man.     In  tho  dance  hall,  in  a  social  bout  at 
tho  bar,  round  about  tho  ^'anics,  he  was  the  noblest  Uonian 
of  them  all.     Skookum  Jim  and  his  twelve  trustv  trainmen 
duplicated  the  trip    once    or  several  times  this  season's 
clean-up,  and  it  left  him  a  handsome  "poke"  to  take  out- 
side.    1  am  not  informed  as  to  whether  ho  was  born  ol 
romantic  antecedents  or  whether  his  romance  was  born  of 
his  gold,  but  ho  had  in  liis  heart  and  his  mind  that  gold 
and   beauty  go  hand   in   hand.     He   therefore   beautified 
himself  so  far  as  physical  culture  could  attain,  and  began 
to  look  about  for  a  helpmate,  a  partner  in  his  gold.     Dr. 
Sawbones  was  not  a  selfish  man,  even  though  he  may  have 
been  a  little  jealous,  and  ho  introduced  him  to  his  fiancee. 
This  girl  took  his  fancy,  filled  the  bill,  and  he  took  to 
wooing  her,  not  as  a  breach  of  confidi>nce,  for  nothing 
was   in   confidence,   but  upon   the  good  sound  principle 
that  she  was  a  girl  to  do  him  honor,  and  in  the  sense 
that    enjoying    the    admiration    and    confidence    of    one 
so   worthy   as   Dr.    Sawbones,    she   must   necessarily   be 
noble    and    wise.     I    will    not    illustrate    his    manner 
and  means   of  wooing,   for   the   ways  on   the   Klondike 
differ  little  from  outside^  and;  moreover,  I  will  make  a 


"^1 


\i 


DNES, 


CO  of  the 
vc  husky 
:,  raarch- 
n  looked 
i  bout  at 
t  Roman 
rainmcn 
season's 
ako  out- 
born  ol 
born  of 
lat  gold 
'autifiod 
d  began 
d.     Dr. 
ay  have 
fiancee. 
took  to 
lotliing 
'inciple 
3  sense 
3f   one 
ily   be 
aanner 
ondike 
lake  a 


il  ■  '■«'• 


SAMUEL  SA  WBONES,  M.  D. 


193 


long  story  short.  I  will  abbreviate  the  angtiish  of  Sam- 
uel Sawbones;  I  will  spare  yon  the  woe  of  details  in  the 
shock  and  terror  to  him.  And  I  can  scarcely  justify  the 
girl  through  her  own  arguments  and  excuses,  and  care 
not  to  invent  any  of  my  own  to  justify  the  dear,  good  girl 
of  a  once  happy  time  in  the  new  departure.  Almost  with 
the  deliberation  and  technicality  of  a  law  judge's  opinion 
she  sentenced  poor  Samuel  Sawbones,  Esq.,  M.D.,  to  a  fall 
neither  knew  whither.  Samuel's  faults — his  financial  fail- 
ures, his  crank  philosophy,  his  hostility  to  female  "re- 
forms"— were  charitably  veiled,  but  the  idols  of  wealth, 
her  worship  of  the  Golden  Calf  were  sharing  her  religion. 
They  had  grown  sentiment  and  principle  with  her.  She 
could  not  and  would  not  sacrifice  these,  therefore  accepts 
the  decrees  of  the  ruling  god.  She  accepted  the  offer  of 
Skookum  Jim  to  share  his  diggings,  though  not  without 
pangs  of  remorse  and  love.  She  still  had  her  love,  such 
as  she  was  capable  of  mustering,  for  Samuel  Sawbones, 
and  only  for  him.  It  was  in  the  book  of  her  new  philos- 
ophy to  sacrifice  all  else  to  fame,  and  gold  is  the  only 
door  of  poor  woman,  save  few  examples,  to  fame  as  she 
reads  and  reckons  fame. 

Hereafter  Dr.  Sawbones  is  seen  almost  daily  on  the 
trail  to  and  fro  reaching  the  Indian  mission  at  Moose- 
hide,  a  few  miles  below  Dawson.  Then  it  was  discovered 
that  he  was  hobnobbing  with  tlie  braves  and  entering  into 
their  powwows  with  more  or  less  enthusiasm,  and  we  took 
upon  ourselves  the  kind  office  of  looking  into  the  proceed- 
ings and  if  necessary  lending  a  guardian's  influence.  We 
were  nonplussed  in  our  own  schemes,  for  here  we  found 
Samuel  in  good  faith  and  with  all  earnestness  transplant- 
ing himself  in  this  tribe  of  natives.  Nor  could  we  remon- 
strate with  any  degree  of  success. 

"Oh,  no/'  said  Samuel.     "I  am  not  going  to  quite  amal- 


194 


THE  DECLINE  AND  FALL  OF 


I' 


gamato  with  tlioso  hardy  children  of  an  iintrammpled  bar- 
barism. I  want  to  became  not  part  and  parcel  of  them, 
but  one  of  them,  that  I  may  k'arn  to  live  their  ways  and 
to  endure  their  existence.  You  must  surely  realize  that  I 
am  done  for  in  the  so-called  civilized  world — that  my 
field  of  fortune  is  cut  down  to  the  standard  two  by  six 
feet.  Yet  you  know  a  man  with  a  mite  of  soul  can  never 
say  surrender.  And  you  know  how  many  good,  brave, 
but  morbidly  ambitious  men  cross  over  in  a  vain  attempt 
to  discover  the  north  pole.  My  present  object — not  ambi- 
tious, mind — is  to  inaugurate  an  expedition  from  this 
tribe  of  native  Alaskans  to  locate,  stake,  and  record  the 
north  pole;  not  that  the  world  will  be  wise  and  I  will  be 
great — and  happy  like  Skookum  Jim — but  that  will  end 
the  destructive  crusade  of  this  century's  visionaries.  My 
plan  in  brief  is  this:  One  or  several  seasons  among  them 
will  make  me  to  every  sense  and  purpose  a  good  Indian. 
With  a  branch  of  the  tribe  I  will  migrate  northward 
slowly,  not  in  the  manner  of  travel,  of  hunting,  or  of  the 
pursuit  of  an  object,  but  simply  on  the  plan  that  the  star 
of  empire  may  spread  northward  just  as  it  did  westward. 
We  probably  this  season  may  pass  over  on  the  McKenzie 
River  and  make  that  home.  Finally,  with  all  the  bear- 
ings and  all  the  conditions,  we  make  another  stage.  But 
you  understand  and  you  also  can  comprehend  that  it  is 
feasible." 

"Yes,  yes.  We  can  understand.  It  may  be  feasible, 
too,  but  'tis  fearfully  foolish.  Y^ou  seem  to  have  lost  your 
grip,  doctor,  and  all  because  of  one  woman.  Simply  be- 
cause one  angelic  creature — painted  by  yourself,  of  course, 
as  are  all  angels  only  seen  or  known  in  paintings — ^has 
chosen  through  her  cultivated  depravity  the  world  and  the 
flesh  and  the  devil,  you  would  unclothe  yourself  of  all 
humanity  and  euccumb  not  to  her  depraved  will,  but  to 


i 


SAMUEL  8 A  WBONES,  M.  D. 


195 


ipled  bar- 
of  them, 
ways  and 
ize  that  I 
-that  my 
vo  by  six 
can  never 
id,  brave, 
1  attempt 
not  ambi- 
rom  this 
ecord  the 
I  will  be 
will  end 
ries.  My 
3ng  them 
1  Indian, 
orthward 
or  of  the 
the  star 
restward. 
IcKenzie 
he  bear- 
?e.  But 
lat  it  is 

'easible, 
ost  your 
iply  be- 
course, 
gs — has 
and  the 
of  all 
but  to 


your  own  wailing.  You  know  in  your  own  heart  that  you 
will  never  reach  the  north  pole;  that  yon  only  will  go  by 
easy  stages  on  up  to  the  groat  ice  country,  there  to  be 
buried  out  of  sight,  out  of  mind  of  old  disappointments. 
Turn  about  and  go  home  witli  me,  where  you  will  omcc 
again  occupy  the  position  of  trust  and  profits  of  yore." 

"Oh,  no.  'Tis  too  hito.  I  am  ever  too  slow  to  keep 
pace  with  the  rise  and  progress  of  the  century.  I  have 
noticed  religion  go — I  might  say  down  and  out  of  my  early 
catechism,  and  there  appears  nothing  to  hold  fast  to,  or 
rather  I  must  let  go  all  the  old  buoys.  Society  has  made 
such  strides  since  my  birth  that  either  I  or  it  goes  on 
straight  to  the  devil  as  per  last  scenes  of  my  biography. 
Inventions  are  so  prolific,  ingenious,  that  maybe  they  will 
yet  beat  me  and  the  natives  to  the  north  pole,  and  I  must 
therewith  step  down  and  out  with  good  grace,  as  you  see 
me  doing.  Moreover,  associations  would  be  mucli  less 
pleasant  than  of  days  past,  for  know  ye,  people  of  to-day 
want  their  pills  and  pukes  with  the  same  relish  they  want 
their  religion,  society,  and  their  honors — sugar-coated. 
More  than  that,  they  want  them  as  service  and  without 
scruples  or  compunctions  of  conscience.  It  is  not  a  crime 
to-dav — it  is  not  a  breach  of  ignorance  or  decencv  to  re- 
quest  the  services  of  Dr.  A.  for  a  season,  then  deliberately 
and  without  an  item  of  excuse  or  reason  employ  Dr.  B. ; 
change  doctor  for  fancy  just  as  they  change  the  flavor  of 
their  meals.  I  may  be  censured  for  the  remark  that  one 
cannot  nowadays  practice  medicine  decently  and  in  order. 
The  laity  has  allowed  itself  license  to  treat  the  learned 
profession  of  medicine  as  hired  menials,  and  so  many  of 
the  profession  accept  the  fawning  of  presumptuous  great 
people  that  I  repeat  'tis  useless  to  try  to  succeed  in  medi- 
cine and  respect  one's  self  at  the  same  time.  In  instances 
I  have  been  installed  family  physician  ten,  twenty  years, 


i\ 


I 


196 


THE  DECLINE  AND  FALL  OF 


'i'.i  •! 


'  j*,' 


then  awakened  of  a  morning  to  find  my.^elf  supplanted,  not 
through  any  infirmity  that  was  accorded  me,  but  through 
fancy  for  change  or  fashion,  and  this  by  people  who  claim 
for  Iheniselves  intelligence,  gentility,  even  decency,  just 
in  the  manner  they  would  ride  tiieir  faithful  old  hack  until 
a  frisky  high-stepper  conies  along,  then  change  the  sad- 
dle.      And   old  associations  haunt  me  sUll.     I  am  dis- 
turbed in  my  dreams  by  phantom  wheels  of  the  swift  out- 
fit of  Dr.  Publico  Executio  over  his  red  trail;  the  lino 
pacers  of  Dr.  Ron)l)asto  Profundo  seem  to  bear  down  upon 
me  so  rapidly  that  I  am  frightened  from  my  sleep  in  great 
drops  of  sweat ;  the  rustler  is  galloping  about  here,  there, 
everywhere,  looking  for  a  breach  in  my  corral,  branding 
every  stray  calf,  and  now  and  then  an  old  cow  even  which 
I  had  corraled  for  years;  Peter  the  Pig  1  imagine  grunt- 
ing in  my  ears,  yet  so  inaudil)ly  that  it  seems  to  caution 
his  female  worshipers,  'silence  is  golden,'  and  to  convince 
mankind  that  silence  is  wisdom,  for  it  is  astonishing  how 
many   swallowed    Peter's   potions.     It    is   humiliating   to 
acknowledge  such  affairs,  but  the  conditions  are  too  real 
to  allow  my  conscience  and  m}'^  remaining  professional  re- 
spect to  move  back  into  the  whirlpool  created  of  compe- 
tition." 

The  winter  season  following  finds  Dr.  Samuel  Sawbones 
and  several  family  branches  of  the  Moosehide  Indians  out- 
fitting for  a  migration  for  the  north  country.  It  was  in 
the  order  of  a  permanent  move  and  grubbed  and  clothed 
accordingly.  No  trouble  will  exist  as  to  grub  staking  in 
the  future  with  fresh  meat  and  fish,  but  flour,  sugar,  tea, 
etc.,  will  he  a  matter  of  self-denial.  And  yet  Dr.  Saw- 
bones, hardy  as  he  is.  surviving  these  luxuries,  necessaries, 
has  other  considerations  to  weigh.  The  Indians,  as  are  all 
Indians,  north  or  south,  have  a  giver,  amount  of  treachery 
in  their  bones.     They  need  and  they  respect  a  chief.     So 


nted,  not 
through 
ho  chiim 
icy,  just 
[ick  until 
the  sad- 
am  dis- 
ivift  out- 
the  fine 
wn  upon 
in  great 
e,  there, 
)randing 
'U  which 
e  grunt- 
caution 
convince 
ing  how 
iting   to 
too  real 
anal  re- 
compe- 

wbones 
IS  out- 
was  in 

othed 
ing  in 
r,  tea, 

Saw- 

;aries, 

re  all 

chery 

So 


SAMUEL  SAWBONES,  MB. 


19V 


long  as  Dr.  Samuel  Sawbones  can  pose  as  a  chief,  so  long 
will  be  hold  his  followers  and  prosper,  but  when  adver- 
sity, misfortune,  or  accident  comes  he  will  be  set  down  and 
out,  and  that  is  the  end.  The  trip  he  proposes  cannot  be 
accomi)lished  without  many  hardships,  accidents,  and  fail- 
ures, therefore  his  chances  of  survival  amount  to  as  many 
as  we  allow  for  the  return  of  Andree  and  his  balloon. 
Yet  my  persuasion  reaches  not  any  fiber  of  his  obstinate 
heart.  I  tell  him  he  simply  means  to  commit  suicide,  but 
he  indignantly  refutes  the  suggestion  and  abuses  me  for 
want  of  faith.  Ilis  old  sweetheart  kneels  before  him,  but 
he  pities  her  and  tells  her  that  weaklings  of  her  caste 
must  not  advise  nor  apjilaud  great  works,  neither  must 
they  bear  any  of  the  burdens.  Then  comes  the  finale.  It 
is  a  barbarous  procession,  but  comic  enough  to  allow  us  to 
witness  and  not  weep.  "Farewell !  Fare  thee  well,  old 
veteran !"  We  stand  fast  for  many  minutes  and  view  the 
long  black  string  braided  upon  the  snow  overlaying  the 
gulch  gliding  off  into  the  top  of  the  range,  following  the 
blazoned  trail  to  the  beyond. 

Adieu,  my  boy !  Peace  will  go  with  thee,  and  pros- 
perity we  will  not  invoke,  for  it  is  only  a  dream  to  hope. 

Not  far  off  the  trail  as  it  led  out  from  camp,  from 
home,  was  an  immobile  figure.  It  was  quite  jrresponsive 
and  I  fear  only  tears  welled  out,  no  sentiment.  I  avoided 
her  and  wended  my  way  home,  more  lonely,  more  for- 
saken than  was  ever  before  my  lot. 


THE  END. 


I  '. 


